Pope tells Chinese Catholics he continues to pray for them

Published: 2008-05-27

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With a brief phrase in Chinese and warm words of welcome in Italian, Pope Benedict XVI told Chinese Catholics living in Italy that he continued to pray for Catholics in their homeland and, especially, for victims of the May 12 earthquake. Hundreds of Chinese Catholics from all over Italy came to Rome to attend a special Mass in the Basilica of St. Mary Major May 24, the day Pope Benedict had asked Catholics around the world to devote to prayers for China. The group joined the pope May 25 for the midday recitation of the Angelus in St. Peter's Square. "I entrust to the merciful love of God all of your fellow citizens who have died in recent days as a consequence of the earthquake that struck a vast area of your country," the pope told the group. "I renew my personal closeness to those who are living through hours of agony and tribulation." The Chinese government said May 27 that the official death toll from the quake had risen to more than 67,000; it also said more than 360,000 people were injured, some 20,000 people were still missing, and tens of thousands were being evacuated because of the danger of flooding from burst dams. Pope Benedict said, "Thanks to the fraternal solidarity of all, may the people of those areas be able to return soon to a normal life."

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