Vatican City, 20 December, 2021 / 8:00 pm (ACI Africa).
In a new television interview aired on Sunday, Pope Francis spoke to four people who have faced difficult life circumstances, including a mother of four children who was a victim of domestic violence.
“It is so, so large the number of women beaten, abused in the home, even by their husband. The problem is that for me it’s almost satanic, because it’s taking advantage of the weakness of someone who cannot defend themselves,” the pope said, in response to a question from an Italian woman named Giovanna.
Giovanna and three other people were featured on the Italian channel TG5 on Dec. 19. During the 45-minute-long special, called “Pope Francis and the Invisible People,” the pope answered questions from Giovanna, who also lost her home and job during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He encouraged her to remember her dignity, pointing to the image of Michelangelo’s Pieta, which depicts the sorrowful Mary holding her dead and naked son, Jesus. “You have dignity, you have the face, the suffering face of one who carries on life, her own and that of her children,” he told her.
Francis also spoke with Maria, a homeless woman who slept on the street for years; Maristella, an 18-year-old isolated by the pandemic; and Pierdonato, who spent 25 years in prison after being given two life sentences.
