Catholic faithful in Venice react to Pope Francis' visit

(28 Apr 2024)
RESTRICTIONS SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Venice, Italy - 28 April 2024
1. Various of crowd of faithful applauding during mass at St Mark’s square
2. Pope Francis praying in front of Holy Mary icon and waving from altar
3. Woman holding rainbow flag
4. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Sister Giuliana, nun from Venice:
“It is always a very beautiful experience to listen to the message of peace and hope that he always offers to the faithful but also to the entire world because the Pope belongs to the whole world not only to us.”
5. Various of Pope onboard police boat
6. Various of Pope approaching event with youth
7. Various of Pope on golf cart
8. Tilt-down of Saint Mary of Health basilica to crowd
9. Group of youth cheering
10. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Giulia Menegazza, 19-year-old faithful from Venice:
“His words were strong, they gave us a very beautiful message that we young people who are always checking mobile phones... we should disconnect from our mobile phones and look at the reality not through the screens.”
11. Tilt-up from police boat to young faithful crossing temporary bridge built for the Pope's visit
12. SOUNDBITE (Italian) Danilo Bobbo, faithful from Venice:
“What struck me the most was the fact that he visited the women detained in the penitentiary because his heart is always closer to the lost and most vulnerable.”
13. Various of Pope leaving St Mark basilica
STORYLINE:
Venice has always been a place of contrasts, of breathtaking beauty and devastating fragility, where history, religion, art and nature have collided over the centuries to produce an otherworldly gem of a city.
But even for a place that prides itself on its culture of unusual encounters, Pope Francis’ visit on Sunday stood out.
Francis traveled to the lagoon city to visit the Holy See’s pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art show and meet with the people who created it.
But because the Vatican decided to mount its exhibit in Venice’s women’s prison, and invited inmates to collaborate with the artists, the whole project assumed a far more complex meaning, touching on Francis’ belief in the power of art to uplift and unite, and of the need to give hope and solidarity to society’s most marginalised.
Francis hit on both messages during his visit, which began in the courtyard of the Giudecca prison where he met with the women inmates one by one.
As some of them wept, Francis urged them to use their time in prison as a chance for “moral and material rebirth."
The visit touched deeply some of the faithful.
Danilo Bobbo from Venice said the moment had been particularly important for him.
“He visited the women detained in the penitentiary because his heart is always closer to the lost and most vulnerable,” he said.
Francis’ dizzying morning visit, which ended with Mass in St Mark's Square, represented an increasingly rare outing for the 87-year-old pontiff, who has been hobbled by health and mobility problems that have ruled out any foreign trips so far this year.
And Venice, with its 121 islands and 436 bridges, isn't an easy place to negotiate.
But Francis pulled it off, arriving by helicopter from Rome, crossing the Giudecca Canal in a water taxi and then arriving in St Mark's Square in a mini popemobile that traversed the Grand Canal via a pontoon bridge erected for the occasion.
The pope also addressed the youth on the importance of not relying too much on mobile phones.
Giulia Menegazza came with a group from Venice outskirts, she said the Pope’s words were welcomed and well received.
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