Pope Francis Kisses the Feet of Refugees

Pope Francis, the leader of the world's Catholics, visited a refugee center on the occasion of Easter and kissed the feet of several Muslim, Orthodox, Hindu, and Catholic refugees. This gesture by the Pope is intended to welcome and accept refugees at a time when anti-immigrant sentiments in Europe have intensified following the terrorist attacks in Brussels and Paris. According to the Associated Press, Pope Francis performed the foot-washing ceremony, which is part of the Easter week traditions, at the Castelnuovo di Porto refugee center in the suburbs of Rome. The foot-washing ceremony is held on Holy Thursday and commemorates a tradition from the life of Jesus Christ, who washed the feet of his disciples the day before his crucifixion, symbolizing service to others in Christian teachings. During the open-air ceremony, banners reading 'Welcome' in various languages were displayed. A small number of the approximately 900 refugees residing in the center attended the ceremony, while others gathered around the venue, filming Pope Francis and the moment he washed the refugees' feet with their mobile phones. According to previous Vatican rules, the foot-washing and kissing of feet were only performed on men, with many priests carrying out this act on 12 Catholic men, reminiscent of Jesus washing the feet of his 12 disciples and emphasizing the male-dominated nature of the priesthood in the Catholic Church. However, in January 2016, Pope Francis changed these regulations, allowing the tradition to be performed on women and girls as well. The Vatican announced on Thursday that for this year's ceremony, 8 men and 4 women were selected. The women included one Catholic staff member of the refugee center and 3 Eritrean Catholic migrants. The men included 4 Catholics from Nigeria, 3 Muslims from Mali, Syria, and Pakistan, and one Hindu from India. According to the new Vatican regulations, any individual from 'God's servants' can participate in such ceremonies. Although the term 'God's servants' traditionally refers to followers of the Catholic faith, the new Vatican law specifies that priests must 'adequately educate the believers and others who are chosen to participate consciously, voluntarily, and actively in these ceremonies.' This implies that the Vatican permits non-Catholics to participate in this ceremony.