Hiroshima mayor hopes to meet Pope before end of year and request visit to A-bombed city
Oct. 5, 2017
Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui told reporters on October 4 that he hopes to see Pope Francis at the Vatican before the end of this year and request that he visit Hiroshima.
Between January and September, there have been visits to Hiroshima by several Vatican-related dignitaries. Mr. Matsui said that the Vatican is now well aware of Hiroshima’s desire to have the Pope visit the city. Though the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was recently adopted, some countries have continued with menacing gestures backed by their nuclear arsenals. Referring to this state of affairs in the international community, Mr. Matsui said that if the Pope conveys a message about the importance of cherishing the spirit of Hiroshima, this would help strengthen ties among those who seek to realize lasting peace in the world.
According to the municipal government, Mr. Matsui is hoping to see the Pope around November 12, when the mayor will attend an event to be held in connection to the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the U.N. Convention on Climate Change, which will take place in Bonn, Germany. In 1981, then Pope John Paul II visited Hiroshima.
The City of Hiroshima will also dispatch young officials to a two-day “summit” to be held by the Obama Foundation in Chicago on October 31 and November 1. Invited by the foundation, the officials from the Peace and International Solidarity Promotion Division of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation will join hundreds of other participants and exchange ideas on such themes as what it means to be an active citizen in the 21st century. Barack Obama and his wife will also attend the summit.
(Originally published on October 5, 2017)
Between January and September, there have been visits to Hiroshima by several Vatican-related dignitaries. Mr. Matsui said that the Vatican is now well aware of Hiroshima’s desire to have the Pope visit the city. Though the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was recently adopted, some countries have continued with menacing gestures backed by their nuclear arsenals. Referring to this state of affairs in the international community, Mr. Matsui said that if the Pope conveys a message about the importance of cherishing the spirit of Hiroshima, this would help strengthen ties among those who seek to realize lasting peace in the world.
According to the municipal government, Mr. Matsui is hoping to see the Pope around November 12, when the mayor will attend an event to be held in connection to the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the U.N. Convention on Climate Change, which will take place in Bonn, Germany. In 1981, then Pope John Paul II visited Hiroshima.
The City of Hiroshima will also dispatch young officials to a two-day “summit” to be held by the Obama Foundation in Chicago on October 31 and November 1. Invited by the foundation, the officials from the Peace and International Solidarity Promotion Division of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation will join hundreds of other participants and exchange ideas on such themes as what it means to be an active citizen in the 21st century. Barack Obama and his wife will also attend the summit.
(Originally published on October 5, 2017)
