"I beg you, please do not underestimate the ethical and anticívic challenge that drug trafficking poses to youth and for the entire Mexican society, including the Church," he said at a meeting in the Metropolitan Cathedral.In a speech that occasionally turned into a "slap on the wrist", he said there is a need to provide a "mother's lap" to the young and capture what they seek, as many of them are seduced by
"the empty power of the world, exalt chimeras and dress themselves in their macabre symbols in order to sell death in exhange for coins."In his view, the Church must offer, in proportion to the phenomenon,
"a serious and qualified pastoral project to contribute gradually to weaving the delicate human network, without which we would all be, from the beginning, defeated by this insidious threat.Starting with families, involving the parishes, schools, community institutions, political communities, security structures, it is possible to release
"the waters in which many lives drown, be it the life of someone who dies as a victim, or someone who, in the sight of God, will always have their hands stained with blood, even if their pockets are full of sordid money and their conscience anesthetized. "The Indigenous
On another issue, the Catholic leader also advocated for indigenous peoples, toward whom he requested "looking with singular delicacy".
"The indigenous of Mexico are still awaiting that the richness of their contributions and the fruitfulness of their presence be fully recognized, in order to inherit that identity which makes them a unique nation and not just one among others."Corruption in the Church
In a tough speech that criticized some actions of the clergy, he asked that they not to be corrupted by the seductive illusions of under the table agreements, but rather that they offer a clean look and not be afraid of transparency.
"Do not lose time and energy on secondary things, gossip and intrigue, in the vain projects of a career, in empty plans for hegemony, in infertile clubs of interest or cliques. Do not be swayed by gossip and slander," he said, without mentioning specific cases.And he called for contributing to the unity of the people, to promoting reconciliation of their differences and the integration of their diversity, and to promoting the recollection of
"the high level Mexico can achieve if it learns to belong to itself rather than others; and to help it find shared and sustainable solutions for its misery; to motivate the entire nation to not be satisfied with less than what is expected of the Mexican way of inhabiting the world."Migrants
On the issue of migrants, Francisco reminded his audience that they leave behind their roots to venture forth, even clandestinely, which involves all kinds of risks, so he called upon the priests to follow them beyond the borders, for which he considered it necessary to strengthen their communion with their U.S. counterparts.
"So many families are divided; and their integration into the alleged 'promised land' is not as easy as one thinks."Spanish original