Page 5 - Pope Francis: Leader of the Catholic Church - World Leaders

CHAPTER 1

A NEW POPE

n July 2013, Pope Francis took a boat to

ILampedusa, a small Italian island in the

Mediterranean Sea. The journey was his first trip

outside Rome, Italy, since becoming pope of the

Roman Catholic Church in March. Residents of the

island greeted him by waving caps and flags.

A few days before his visit, a boat filled with

165 migrants had reached the island. They had

left their homes in Africa in search of better lives.

Pope Francis shakes the hands of migrants on the
Italian island of Lampedusa.
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