– Alejandro J. Rosa/ACFI – Europa Press
The Pope warns mafias they will face “divine justice” for “each lost life and deceived family.”
He urges them to stop and encourages breaking these “chains” to “make amends as much as they can,” stating that “there is still time.”
The highlight of the day included the Pope having to return to Rome on the King’s Falcon due to a technical issue with the planned flight.
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 12 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Pope Leo XIV rounded off his seventh and final day in Spain with a visit to the reception centre in Las Raíces, where he personally greeted many of the migrants residing there. He then led a mass attended by over 35,000 faithful in Tenerife, concluding with the anecdote of having to return to Rome on the Air Force Falcon previously used by the King to farewell the Supreme Pontiff.
The Pope woke up on Friday in Gran Canaria after spending the night at the Bishop’s Palace. He departed for Tenerife, arriving shortly after 9:20 AM, where he was welcomed by local authorities before heading to the reception centre in Las Raíces.
Upon arrival at the airport, the Pontiff was greeted by the President of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo; the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz; the Government Delegate in the Canary Islands, Anselmo Pestana; the President of the Canary Islands Parliament, Astrid Pérez; and the President of the Tenerife Cabildo, Rosa Dávila, among other officials.
Once at Las Raíces, Leo XIV expressed gratitude to the Spanish government and institutions for their “concrete assistance” at the San Cristóbal de La Laguna reception camp, a humanitarian aid facility under the Ministry of Migration. He noted that all individuals are “in some way, migrants.”
The encounter with the residents of the centre was the most subdued event of his entire visit to the Canaries, held at the entrance to the facility on an open space beside rows of large white military-style tents. Las Raíces has temporarily housed up to 2,500 people and currently accommodates around 800, having welcomed more than 70,000 individuals since its opening in 2021, supported by nearly 600 workers.
THE POPE THINKS OF SO MANY “WOUNDED HEARTS” FROM “DIFFICULTIES”
The Pope acknowledged that seeing their faces and hearing their testimonies made him think of their “hearts, wounded by so many difficulties but also consoled by the love received from other open, generous, and merciful hearts.”
The Pontiff personally greeted many migrants and also took the time to hold several children who were with their families in the front rows. He toured part of the facility, which was being seen for the first time, as the media had not previously had access.
CALLING ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING MAFIAS: “STOP”
After this visit, Pope Leo XIV addressed the crowd at the Plaza del Cristo de La Laguna, advocating for a world “without walls” and urging the mafias to end the trafficking of migrant persons because “the money taken from the vulnerability of the poor will not bring peace, honour, or future.”
- He urged, “Stop, convert yourselves,” addressing over 2,000 people.
- The Pope listened to testimonies from migrants and organisations working in the reception networks, even joining in a ‘six-seven’ in response to a request from a young Senegalese man.
He emphasised that for each lost life and every deceived family, traffickers will have to answer to “divine justice.” He encouraged them to break these “chains” and “make amends as much as they can,” asserting that “there is still time.”
MASS ATTENDED BY 35,000 FAITHFUL
The final event of the Pope’s visit to Tenerife, the Canary Islands, and Spain was a grand mass attended by over 35,000 people at the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The Mayor, José Manuel Bermúdez, presented several gifts, including a silver cross, a scale model of the Foundational Cross of the city, after which it is named.
“Open to all this sea of love! This is my wish and my prayer for you and for all those you encounter on your journey,” the Pontiff exclaimed during his farewell homily.
Additionally, he highlighted the contrast between the migration crisis and tourism in Tenerife, urging not to “reduce everything to trade and profit,” but to learn to value each person and enjoy the simplest things.
He finally invited everyone to pay “attention to adolescents and the youth, the wealthy and the poor, residents and guests,” with a perspective that “goes beyond appearances.” “Let it be felt among you that God is love,” the Supreme Pontiff concluded his final words of this visit to Spain, which began on 6 June, encompassing Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canaries.
The Pope, who expressed being “moved” by the “great affection” and the “great Catholic heart of Spain,” proceeded to the airport, even driving down the motorway with the window down, waving at the crowd.
THE ANECDOTE: THE POPE RETURNS TO ITALY ON THE KING’S FALCON
The highlight of the day was that the Pope had to return to Rome on the Falcon that King Felipe VI had planned to use to return to Madrid due to a technical issue with the original flight. The pilots of Wing 45 were responsible for transporting the Pontiff to Italy.
