June 25, 2021 - 12:51 AMT
Pope Francis remembers Armenia trip at ROACO session

Pope Francis has remembered his pilgrimage to Armenia at the the plenary session of the Reunion of Aid Agencies for the Oriental Churches (ROACO), information provided by the Vatican reveals.

"At the conclusion of my Apostolic Journey in Armenia in 2016, Catholicos Karekin II and I released doves into the sky as a sign of hope for peace in the entire Caucasus region," Francis said in his speech.

"Sadly, in recent months that hope has once more been disappointed. For this reason, I am grateful for the concern you have shown for the situation in Georgia and Armenia, in order to enable the Catholic community to continue to be a sign and leaven of evangelical life."

During his trip, Francis paid tribute to the 1.5 million Armenians massacred in the Genocide of 1915-1923. "Here I pray, with pain in my heart, so that never again will there be tragedies like this, so that humanity does not forget and knows how to overcome evil with good," he wrote in the guest book at the Armenian Genocide Memorial and Museum back then.