Pope Francis prayed with thousands of faithful for kindness towards refugees at the end of his visit to Malta

Pope Francis prayed on Sunday that the world would show more kindness and compassion towards refugees by paying tribute in Malta to the castaway St. Paul and meeting with migrants who, like the apostle, arrived on the Mediterranean island and were received.

Pope Francis opened his second and final day in Malta by visiting St. Paul's Grotto in Rabat, where the disciple stayed after being shipwrecked on the way to Rome in 60 AD. According to the biblical account of the time, the Maltese people showed Paul an unusual kindness, and he responded by preaching and healing, bringing Christianity to the islands.

“No one knew their names, their place of birth or their social status; they only knew one thing: that they were people who needed help,” Francis said in a prayer. “Help us to recognize from afar those in need, fighting amid the waves of the sea, thrown against the reefs of unknown shores.”

The 85-year-old pope repeatedly struggled to walk and get up from his chair, evidence of knee pain that has apparently become more pronounced on the trip. However, Francis persevered, and while he was in the golden basilica he rose from his chair to bless someone in a wheelchair.

Francis used his two-day visit to Malta to bring home his call to Europe to show the same welcome to migrants and refugees that the Maltese showed to São Paulo. It has expanded that message to express its gratitude for the welcome that Europe has shown to Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian war and its hope that the same generosity can be extended to others.

Today's Malta has long been at the center of the European debate on refugee policy. The country of half a million people is frequently criticized by humanitarian aid groups for refusing to allow rescue ships to dock in its ports; the government argues that it has one of the highest rates in the EU in processing asylum applications for the first time relative to the population, and says that others larger European countries should do more to take on the burden.

Just this week, a German aid group urged Malta to take in 106 migrants rescued from Libya; Malta resisted and on Saturday the mayor of Palermo, Sicily, said the city was ready to welcome them.

Upon arriving in Valletta on Saturday, Francis thanked Malta for the welcome it has shown to newcomers, and criticized the European Union's policy that trains the Libyan Coast Guard to return smuggled migrants to the coast. Human rights groups have documented serious abuses in Libyan detention centres where returning migrants are housed.

“Civilized countries cannot in their own interest approve sordid agreements with criminals who enslave other human beings,” Francisco said.

Pope Francis concluded his trip with an open-air mass on Sunday in Valletta and an afternoon visit to a volunteer-run shelter that can house about 50 migrants and provide them with educational and medical services. Most of its current occupants come from Somalia, Eritrea and Sudan and made the dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean from Libya.

The mass attracted some 20,000 people, many of them waving the yellow and white Vatican flags and some Ukrainian flags as the pope approached Floriana's camp on his popemobile, sitting for some of the greetings instead of standing.

The journey, although short, has been particularly tiring for the 85-year-old pontiff, who suffers from painful distension in the ligaments of his right knee. He had to use an elevator to get on and off the plane and his limp walk from sciatica has been so pronounced that he has often had to hold on to the arm of an aide. On Saturday, when he arrived at the place of mass, he had great difficulty getting up from his popemobile chair.

(with information from AP)

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