Iran has an important role to play in the Middle East and in the fight against terrorism
Pope Francis met the President of Iran at the Vatican, Jan 26, urging the Middle Eastern leader to find peaceful solutions for the Middle East and work with him to combat terrorism.
Feb 05, 2016

VATICAN: Pope Francis met the President of Iran at the Vatican, Jan 26, urging the Middle Eastern leader to find peaceful solutions for the Middle East and work with him to combat terrorism.
Francis and President Hassan Rouhani had a private meeting that lasted around 40 minutes at the end of which the Pope said he “hoped for peace.”
“During the discussions, common spiritual values emerged and reference was made to the good state of relations between the Holy See and the Islamic Republic of Iran, the life of the church in the country and the action of the Holy See to favour the promotion of the dignity of the human person and religious freedom,” a Vatican spokeman said.
“The important role that Iran plays to promote suitable political solutions to the problems afflicting the Middle East, to counter the spread of terrorism and arms traffiking was also discussed,” he added.
Both parties recalled the importance of interreligious dialogue and the responsibility religious communities have to foster reconciliation, tolerance and peace.”
After the papal audience, Rouhani met the Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who was accompanied by the Secretary for Relations with States, Mgr Paul Gallagher.
The private meeting between Hassan Rouhani and the Pope lasted 40 minutes. The Iranian president arrived a minute or so late, after 11 am, wearing a white turban and with a 20-car-long motorcade. Stringent security measures were in place along Via della Conciliazione and St. Peter’s Square. Rouhani was accompanied by a 12-member delegation, including Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif and the ambassador to the Holy See, Mohammad Taher Rabbani.
The Persian leader gave the Pope a handwoven rectangular carpet, along with a large illustrated book of miniatures. The Pope in turn, gave Rouhani a St. Martin medal, one of the two gifts traditionally presented to visiting heads of state (the other gift is a medal depicting the angel of peace), explaining that the image of the saint who removes his cape and gives it to a pauper, “is a symbol of gratuitous fraternity.”
The Pope also gave the Iranian president copies of the Laudato Si’ encyclical “on care for the environment,” one in Italian, one in English and since it was not available in Farsi, “please allow me to give you a version in Arabic.”
As the two bid each other farewell, journalists reported that the Pope told Rouhani, “Thank you very much for this visit and I am hopeful for peace.” To which the Iranian president replied, “I ask you to pray for me. It was a real pleasure and I wish you well with your work.” -- La Stampa/Tablet
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