The unspeakable cruelty of the Holocaust must never be repeated…

Pope Francis vehemently stressed this one day before International Holocaust Remembrance Day, toward the conclusion of his weekly General Audience in the Vatican. The United Nations General Assembly designated January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, as International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Pope Francis visited the Nazi death camps of Auschwitz on July 29, 2016 during his Apostolic Visit to Poland on the occasion of World Youth Day. While visiting in silence, he wrote in Spanish in Auschwitz’s commemorative book, “Lord, have mercy on your people. Lord, forgiveness for so much cruelty.” Pope Francis has also met with several Auschwitz survivors, and is the third of three recent popes to visit the site.

“Tomorrow is International Holocaust Remembrance Day,” he said, underscoring: “It is necessary to remember the extermination of millions of Jews, and people of different nationalities and religious faiths. This unspeakable cruelty must never be repeated.”

“I appeal to everyone, especially educators and families,” Pope Francis underscored, “to foster in the new generations an awareness of the horror of this black page of history. It must not be forgotten, so that we can build a future where human dignity is no longer trampled underfoot.”

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