Pope Francis kisses the feet of the leaders of Southern Sudan after the ecumenical retreat

An ecumenical spiritual retreat led by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Pope Francis at the Vatican ended yesterday with Pope Francis, who embraced the feet of South Sudanese political leaders. The unprecedented two-day retreat was organized to support the country's fragile peace deal. Past political leaders included South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit and opposition leader Riek Machar. The two countries are expected to form a national unity government as part of a fragile peace deal aimed at ending six years of civil war in the world's newest country.

Pope Francis shocked the church and retired political leaders at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the Vatican's official guest house that also hosts Pope Francis, yesterday (Thursday) when it took place. Is withdrawn from his prepared remarks to make a personal plea to Sudan's political leaders.

"To you three who signed the peace agreement, I ask you as a brother: stay in peace," said Pope Francis. "I ask you with my heart. Let's go from the front. There will be many problems but they will not overcome us. Go ahead, go ahead and solve the problems. You started a process. That it ends well.

"There will be struggles and disagreements among you, but it will be within the community – even within the office – but in front of the people, hold hands, united; thus, as ordinary citizens, you will become the fathers of the nation. "

He said that he was asking from the bottom of his heart with his deepest feelings, before walking towards the chiefs and kneeling to kiss their feet; to the obvious shock and surprise of the present.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, called the retreat a "miracle": "Until 24 hours after the start, we did not know it was going to happen. The atmosphere has been extraordinary and we only see the hand of God in it. "

The retreat was proposed by Bishop Justin and approved by Pope Francis. It would have been unthinkable even a few years ago. "We have a rally at the invitation of the Pope at the Vatican, with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the former moderator of the Presbyterian Church," Archbishop Justin said. "These are churches separated for half a millennium.

"We have the main political leaders of Southern Sudan, gathered around the main spiritual leaders. Political leaders have been at war for six years.

"And we have all arrived, the logistics have worked and they engage with each other as human beings and a deep sense of the Spirit of God is at it. artwork."

He added, "If you have seen so many peace attempts, you have given up hope that this will ever happen, that you feel skeptical and cynical about it, I understand exactly why. But I begin with our Christian faith: that we believe in God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead so that all evils and darkness would eventually be overcome in the resurrection. And the resurrection life is overflowing in an unpredictable way. for that there is always hope.

And what we have seen in the last 24 hours is not a promise of change; but it's a reasonable hope for change.

The Anglican primate of South Sudan, Archbishop Justin Bada Arama, used Twitter to address people during their prayers. "We concluded the healing retreat today at the Vatican," he said. "We have all been mandated by the Holy Father, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Presbyterian moderator of Scotland to return and become ambbadadors for peace and reconciliation in Southern Sudan."

As political leaders and church leaders gathered in the Vatican, a group of ecumenical women participated in three days of prayer and fasting at the headquarters of the South Sudan Council of Churches in Juba.