Pope Francis has arrived in Brazil in a return to his native South America for the Catholic World Youth Day festival to promote faith among younger generations in the largely Catholic country.
The Argentinian pope was greeted at the Rio de Janeiro airport on Monday by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, according to the BBC.
World Youth Day is an annual festival dedicated to promoting faith among young Catholics around the world. Though Brazil is the world’s largest Catholic country, many hope that the event will invigorate the country’s now-waning faith, reports USA Today.
The low-key pontiff has stunned local officials by choosing to remain in an open-air car rather than the famous bulletproof “popemobile,” according to the Los Angeles Times.
The festival is expected to attract a million visitors. Francis’s unusual lifestyle has already made positive impressions on the Church’s younger members.
“I want to see him and feel him close to me,” commented Carlos Alberto Fahd, a 23-year-old Brazilian student. “Francis is already changing the church with his simplicity.” Fahd traveled from northern Brazil for the special occasion.
En route to Brazil, Francis spoke with reporters about the global crisis causing high unemployment rates among youths.
“We run the risk of having a generation that hasn't worked,” the pontiff said. He also criticized a “culture” that socially rejects elderly people who have been “thrown away” as if they had nothing to offer society.
Francis has made waves since he became pope with his choices to live a simple life and his modern ideas about religion and the world.
In May, he said that atheists who are good people can still be redeemed through Jesus and people of all religions and beliefs should work together. He recently offered indulgences to his Twitter followers, though the Church says some old-fashioned faith is still required to get to heaven sooner.
Above, devotees wait for the pope to drive past in Brazil.
Images: WikiCommons, Twitter
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