The national motto “e pluribus unum” (“out of many, one”) can serve as an inspiration of the ideal of unity amid diversity “in an age marked by conflicts and polarization from which the Catholic community itself is not immune,” the pope said in a June 30 message sent to participants of the Catholic Media Conference.
Pope Francis used his June 3 audience and a phone call with the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to express his solidarity and support following days of demonstrations protesting the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
With anger and frustration still high in the United States over the death of George Floyd, religious leaders should organize ecumenical and interreligious prayer initiatives to bring people together and promote healing, said top Vatican official Cardinal Peter Turkson.
Observing with great concern the social unrest unfolding in the United States, Pope Francis said no one can claim to defend the sanctity of every human life while turning a blind eye to racism and exclusion.
