#PopeFrancis "In a world thirsting for peace....I hope that the spirit of the Olympic Games inspires..." #Olympic Message - FULL TEXT
With the Olympic Games 2016 getting underway in Rio on Saturday, August 6th, Pope Francis told all those involved to ‘fight the good fight’ and finish the race together.
He said “in a world thirsting for peace, tolerance, and reconciliation”, the prize for all participants and spectators of the Games consisted in something much more precious than a medal.
Their prize, he said, is “the construction of a civilization in which solidarity reigns and is based upon the recognition that we are all members of the same human family, regardless of the differences of culture, skin color, or religion.”
The Holy Father also expressed his desire that all Brazilians, “who with their joy and characteristic hospitality have organized the ‘Feast of Sport’, … that this will be an opportunity to overcome difficult moments and commit themselves to working as a team to build a more just and safe country, betting all on a future full of hope and joy."
A Vatican Radio English translation of Pope Francis’ message for the Olympics is below:
I would like to send an especially warm greeting to the Brazilian people, in particular to the city of Rio de Janeiro, which is hosting the athletes and passionate fans from all over the world on the occasion of the Olympics. In a world thirsting for peace, tolerance, and reconciliation, I hope that the spirit of the Olympic Games inspires all – participants and spectators – to “fight the good fight” and finish the race together (cf. 2 Tim 4,7-8), desiring to obtain as a prize, not a medal, but something much more precious: the construction of a civilization in which solidarity reigns and is based upon the recognition that we are all members of the same human family, regardless of the differences of culture, skin color, or religion. And for all Brazilians, who with their joy and characteristic hospitality have organized the ‘Feast of Sport’, I hope that this will be an opportunity to overcome difficult moments and commit themselves to working as a team to build a more just and safe country, betting all on a future full of hope and joy. May God bless you all!
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