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Throngs of pilgrims spent the night sleeping on the beach before a final mass yesterday in Brazil by Pope Francis, capping a trip aimed at reviving the Catholic faith.As waves crashed ashore, groups of young believers who gathered in Rio de Janeiro for a Catholic youth event dipped their feet in the water or sang “hallelujah” to samba beats, while others attempted to sleep amid the ruckus.
At Copacabana, a beach usually associated with women in skimpy bikinis and caipirinha cocktails, nuns, priests and monks mingled with young pilgrims that came from as far as Australia, the Philippines and the United States .
The city’s mayor said he expects up to three million people to pack the beach for the final mass of the pope’s week-long visit to the tropical city.
On his first trip abroad since becoming pope in March, Francis urged the faithful attending World Youth Day on Saturday to shake up their Church.
Latin America’s first pontiff also delved into politics, voicing support for youths protesting for change in Brazil and elsewhere.
“The young people in the street are the ones who want to be actors of change. Please don’t let others be actors of change,” the 76-year-old Argentine pope told an estimated two million people at Copacabana.
“I ask you to be actors of change, keep overcoming apathy and offering a Christian response to the social and political concerns taking place in different parts of the world,” Francis said.
Brazil was rocked by massive protests last month as crowds demanded better public services and end to endemic corruption. He urged Brazil’s elite in a speech to confront social turmoil with “constructive dialogue.”
“Between selfish indifference and violent protest there is always another possible option: that of dialogue,” he said.
But the main goal of his visit, which ends late Sunday, is to re-energize his flock – especially in countries like Brazil, where the number of Catholics have decreased as Evangelical churches and secularism gain ground.
Dubbed the “pope of the poor,” Francis put his message into practice by visiting one of Rio’s notoriously dangerous shantytowns. He exhorted the Catholic church to “seek and serve Christ” in the world’s slums and win back those who left the faith.
The pope’s charisma and desire to meet face-to-face with his flock turned him into a star since he landed in Brazil yesterday. Pilgrims are eager to approach him and kiss his hand, visibly unnerving his security detail. – AP
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