Pope Francis visits Auschwitz and begs: 'Lord, forgive so much cruelty'

The pontiff stays mainly silent as he prayers for the victims of the death camp - saving his few words for survivors greeting him there

Pope Francis spent much of his visit in silent prayer (Reuters)

Pope Francis paid a sombre visit in silence to the death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau on Friday, praying silently in tribute to 1.5 million people, most of them Jews, gassed there by Nazi occupiers during the Second World War.

The Argentine-born pontiff entered the camp on foot, walking slowly in his white robes beneath the notorious gate at Auschwitz that bears the cynical words “Arbeit Macht Frei (Work sets you free).”

After meeting briefly with around a dozen death camp survivors, he moved on to nearby Birkenau, a sprawling complex where people were murdered in factory-like fashion in its gas chambers. There he greeted 25 Holocaust rescuers.

Altogether, it was a deeply contemplative and private visit of nearly two hours that Francis passed in total silence, except for a few words he exchanged with the survivors and rescuers.

Pope Francis spent a few minutes speaking quietly and exchanging gifts with the Auschwitz survivors, including a 101-year-old woman.

One of the male survivors gave the pope a picture of himself surrounded by other inmates in a bunk, and asked Pope Francis to sign it. The sombre-looking pope kissed each survivor.

Survivor of the German Nazi death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau says it was good that Pope Francis has visited the site. Francis visited on Friday and met 11 of the camp's dwindling number of survivors.

Survivor Lidia Maksymowicz, 75, said on Polish TVN it was a “great event” for her to meet the pontiff.

She said: “It is an extraordinary thing that this pope, who is sensitive to human poverty and humiliation, was able to see this place where people were brought to the lowest levels of degradation.”

Ms Maksymowicz was two years old when brought to the camp and was five when the camp was liberated by the Soviet Red Army in 1945.

Vatican and Polish church officials explained that Pope Francis wanted to express his sorrow in silence at the site, mourning the victims in quiet prayer and meditation.

However, he did express his feelings, writing in the Auschwitz memorial's guest book in Spanish: “Lord, have mercy on your people! Lord, forgiveness for so much cruelty!” He then signed with his name in Latin, “Franciscus” and added the date “29.7.2016.”

Pope Francis is the first pope to visit Auschwitz who did not himself live himself through the brutality of teh Second World War.

Both of his predecessors had a personal or historical connection to the site. St. John Paul II, born in Poland, witnessed the unspeakable suffering inflicted on his nation during the German occupation during the war. His successor, Pope Benedict XVI, who visited in 2006, was a German who served in the Hitler Youth for a time as a teenager.

Pope Francis prayed silently for more than 15 minutes before greeting the survivors. He then carried a large white candle to the Death Wall, where prisoners at Auschwitz were executed.

At the dark underground prison cell that once housed St. Maximilian Kolbe, a Polish friar who sacrificed his life to save that of a fellow prisoner who had a family, Francis prayed again. A few shafts from a tiny window were the only light cast on the pontiff.

He then travelled two miles to Birkenau, the vast satellite camp where the Nazis murdered Jews, Roma and others from across Europe.

Invited guests, among them camp survivors and Christian Poles who saved Jews during the war, stood in respect as the pope arrived, his vehicle driving parallel to the rail tracks once used to transport victims to their deaths there. At one point the deep silence was broken by the wailing of an infant.

When Pope Francis arrived, the hundreds of guests applauded. Pope Francis slowly observed each of the memorial plaques in the 23 languages used by the inmates.

Poland's chief rabbi, Michael Schudrich, then recited, in Hebrew, Psalm 130, which starts: “From the depths I have cried out to you, O Lord.”

Pope Francis clasped his hands and bent his head as the psalm was read, first by the rabbi and then by a priest in Polish.

John Paul's visit to the site in 1979 made history because it was the first ever by a pontiff, part of the Vatican's historical efforts at reconciliation with Jews.

As a pope hailing from another continent, Pope Francis's presence highlights visit the universal importance of a site that in recent years has drawn ever more visitors from around the world. The millions who now visit have put increasing stress on the site's aging barracks, prompting urgent conservation efforts that are being funded by governments worldwide.

Pope Francis' visit is also different in that it had a private character with no speeches. Benedict, for instance, spoke there in 2006 in Italian — pointedly avoiding his native German language — in a speech questioning why God was silent at the slaughter of so many.

The pope's visit to Auschwitz came on the third day of a five-day visit to Poland that includes meetings with young pilgrims taking part in World Youth Day, a global celebration of faith. Friday is devoted to the theme of suffering.

Associated Press