James O'Reilly
The Grand Mosque of Algiers is the largest mosque in Africa and the third largest in the world, holding up to 37,000 people—it is a site even Pope Leo had to see.
After walking through it without his shoes, as Muslim tradition requires, the pope paused for a moment of silence, accompanied by the imam.
Afterward, an inter-religious dialogue took place in which Pope Leo highlighted the importance of coexistence between the two religions.
POPE LEO XIV
It is very important to learn to live together with respect for the dignity of every human person.
Then, following a private meeting with Augustinian nuns, the pope went to the Basilica of Our Lady of Africa, where he was welcomed by the country’s small Catholic community.
After listening to several testimonies, the pope addressed them with these warm words. He spoke to them about the martyrs of the land.
POPE LEO XIV
Love for our brothers and sisters is precisely what inspired the witness of the martyrs we have remembered. In the face of hatred and violence, they remained faithful to charity, even to the sacrifice of their lives, together with many Christian and Muslim men and women. They did so without pretension, without outcry, with the serenity and firmness of those who neither boast nor despair, because they know in whom they have placed their trust.
After this gathering, Pope Leo XIV concluded his first day in Algeria. Next, he will set out to follow in the footsteps of his spiritual patron: Saint Augustine of Hippo.
