Pope Francis highlighted the importance of democracy and caring for one’s neighbor, the poor, and creation, which constitutes the “essential pillars for a renewed humanism” in his first speech in Greece.
The Holy Father was meeting with the political and religious authorities, the Diplomatic Corps, businessmen, and representatives of civil society and culture in the Presidential Palace of Athens on 4 December. The Pontiff pointed out “I come as a pilgrim to these places that abound with spirituality, culture, and civilization ”.
The Pope added that “without Athens and without Greece, Europe, and the world would not be what they are: they would be less wise and less happy” and highlighted “from Mount Olympus to the Acropolis and Mount Athos. Greece invites the man of all times to guide the journey of life upwards: towards God because we need transcendence to be truly human ”.
“From this city, from this cradle of civilization a message was raised – and may it always continue to rise – oriented upwards and towards the other; that to the seductions of authoritarianism respond with democracy; that he opposes the care of the other, the poor and creation, essential pillars for a renewed humanism, which is what our times and our Europe need, ”the Pope said.
Later, the Holy Father recalled that democracy was born in Greece, that there “man became aware of being ‘a political animal’ and, as part of a community, saw in others not only subjects, but also citizens with whom to organize together with the polis ”and added that“ politics is a good thing and that is how it should be in practice, as the supreme responsibility of the citizen, as the art of the common good ”.