During Sunday’s Angelus, Pope Francis remembers the victims of the wildfires that devastated the island of Maui in Hawaii. He also prayed for diaologue and peace in the west-central African nation of Cameroon.
By Thaddeus Jones
In his greetings following the recitation of Sunday’s Angelus, Pope Francis turned his thoughts to the island of Maui, in Hawaii, when he reassured his prayers for the victims of the wildfires that have devastated the area. The Pope’s words followed a telegram he sent to the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States two days ago when he expressed his “solidarity with all those suffering from this tragedy, especially those whose loved ones have died or are missing,” while praying for “God’s blessings of strength and peace” on the people.
The death toll from the wildfires on Maui has reached 93, while hundreds remain missing. The governor of Hawaii said the fires mark the largest natural disaster ever experienced, with an estimated 2,200 structures destroyed or damaged.
Peace in Cameroon
The Pope then recalled that tomorrow on the eve of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a peace pilgrimage will take place in Bafoussam, Cameroon, a nation still suffering from violence and war.
“Let us join in prayer with our brothers and sisters in Cameroon so that, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, God may sustain the hope of the people who have been suffering for years and open ways of dialogue to reach harmony and peace.”
At the same time, the Pope asked everyone to continue to pray for the battered nation of Ukraine, suffering greatly due to the war.
