Williams: Pope Francis Laments ‘Unspeakable Tragedy’ of Lewiston Shooting

ROME — Pope Francis has reached out to the victims and families of the October 25 mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, promising prayers and spiritual closeness.

A Vatican telegram addressed to Portland Bishop Robert Deeley said that Pope Francis “was deeply saddened to learn of the terrible loss of life resulting from the mass shooting in Lewiston,” adding that he “expresses his spiritual closeness to all those suffering from this unspeakable tragedy, especially the families who lost loved ones.”

The pontiff entrusts “the souls of the dead to the loving mercy of almighty God and he prays for the recovery of the wounded and the medical personnel caring for them,” Saturday’s telegram stated.

The message said that Francis also “commends the noble efforts of first responders who put themselves in harm’s way to protect the community.”

“With firm trust that aided by God’s grace we can overcome evil with good, the Holy Father invokes upon the people of Lewiston and indeed the entire country, almighty God’s blessings of strength and peace,” the telegram concludes.

In reaching out to Americans, Francis has momentarily put aside his proverbial dislike of the United States to share in the nation’s sorrow.

The pope, who has said he considers it “an honor to be attacked by Americans,” brought with him a typically Latin American distrust of the U.S. from his native Argentina.

This month, Francis singled out the United States as uniquely responsible for the global “climate crisis,” despite findings by the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) that the U.S. is one of the countries with the cleanest air in the world.

“If we consider that emissions per individual in the United States are about two times greater than those of individuals living in China, and about seven times greater than the average of the poorest countries, we can state that a broad change in the irresponsible lifestyle connected with the Western model would have a significant long-term impact,” he declared in a teaching letter titled Laudate Deum.

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