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"There are those who work systematically and with every means to
reject migrants," the pontiff said during his weekly general
audience in St. Peter's Square.
"And this, when done with conscience and responsibility, is a
grave sin," he said.
The pope has spoken frequently about the treatment of migrants
over his 11-year papacy. But his words on Wednesday, invoking
Catholic terminology for one of the worst kinds of sin, were
especially strong.
Migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea in simple crafts or
home-made dinghies from northern Africa and the Middle East have
been the subject of intense debate across Europe over the past
decade.
The International Organization for Migration estimates that more
than 30,000 migrants crossing the Mediterranean have gone
missing since 2014.
In Italy, a rescue ship operated by the Doctors Without Borders
charity was issued a 60-day detention order on Monday.
Authorities said the vessel, which had conducted several rescue
operations on Aug. 23, failed to properly communicate its
movements.
Doctors Without Borders refuted those claims. "We have been
sanctioned for simply fulfilling our legal duty to save lives,"
it said in a statement.
Francis on Wednesday called for expanding access routes for
migrants and a "global governance of migration based on justice,
brotherhood and solidarity." The pope said the issue would not
be resolved through the "militarization of borders".
In recent weeks, the pope had been offering a series of
reflections about Catholic spiritual matters in his weekly
audiences.
At the beginning of Wednesday's remarks, the pope said he was
postponing that series this week, to consider "people who are
crossing seas and deserts to find a place where they can live in
peace and security".
Wednesday's audience was the last before Francis, aged 87,
embarks next week for an ambitious four-country visit across
Southeast Asia from Sept. 2-13. It is the longest trip yet by
the pontiff, who now regularly uses a wheelchair due to knee and
back pain.
(Reporting by Joshua McElwee, editing by Alvise Armellini and
Sharon Singleton)
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