(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met privately with the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize winners on Saturday, calling them “architects of peace.”
The 2015 Prize went to Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, for what the Nobel Committee called “its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine Revolution of 2011.”
Pope Francis met for 15 minutes with Mohamed Fadhel Mahfoudh, Abdessatar Ben Moussa, Wided Bouchamaoui, and Houcine Abbassi on Saturday morning.
The four represented the Tunisian General Labour Union; the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts; the Tunisian Human Rights League, and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers. The four organizations helped to establish a new constitution and presidential elections last year after a series of political assassinations in 2013.
During the meeting, Pope Francis said they accomplished their work “with their hands and their hearts,” and praised the methodology they used for dialogue and bringing stability to Tunisia.
The Nobel Laureates, for their part, thanked Pope Francis for receiving them, and called him a “true man of peace.” The gave the Pope a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday greeted employees of Italian National Social Security Institute in St Peter’s Square, where he stressed the importance of supporting the dignity of work and workers.
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In his prepared remarks to the estimated 23 thousand employees and executives of the Italian National Social Security Institute or INPS, gathered in St Peter’s Square on Saturday, Pope Francis told them that they had an important role in society in that they have been entrusted with, what the Holy Father defined at the right to rest.
The Pope was referring not only to benefits of which every employee is entitled but also to spiritual rest such as on a Sunday, the rest God wanted on the seventh day.
The Holy Father noted the challenges that those at the Institute have to face in today’s society, especially with regards to insufficient employment and often the precarious nature of work.
Pope Francis went on to stress that it was important to remember those who were especially in need of their attention, such as, unemployed workers and their families, working mothers, pensioners, and those who have the right to retire, and those who have suffered work related injuries
Work, underlined the Pope, cannot be a mere cog in a mechanism that grinds resources to earn more and more profits while sacrificing values and principles. He also said, it was imperative to support the dignity of work, to work for those who work and for those who are not able to. Support the weakest, the Pope concluded “so that everyone has the chance to have the freedom to live a truly human life.”
(from Vatican Radio)…