Pope Francis visits Castel Gandolfo; Vatican Conference on trafficking
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday visited the Pontifical Residence in Castel Gandolfo to attend the unveiling of two iron sculptures created Argentinian artiest Alejandro Marmo.
The Pope had lunch with the artist and his family, as well as some Vatican officials.
The Pope then walked over to the helipad, where he met with a group of 40 people from Argentina, and blessed the two works of art.
He returned to the Vatican by car, stopping first at the Clinica Pio XI, where he visited Cardinal Jorge María Mejía, who is recovering from an illness.
From there, he went directly to the Casina Pio IV, home of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, which was hosting an international symposium of young people involved in the fight against human trafficking.
He thanked them for their work, and said it was a fight against those who seek to “make humanity think a person is meant to be used and thrown away…made disposable.”
Pope Francis said they were “rescuing the dignity of the person,” “salvaging” those who have been thrown away “as trash” and “re-anointing them with dignity.”