Pope gets an electrifying World Youth Day welcome and urges fighting for economic justice, climate

LISBON, Portugal — Hundreds of thousands of flag-waving young people from around the globe gave Pope Francis a raucous welcome to the World Youth Day festival in Portugal’s capital Thursday, in a sign of youthful support for the 86-year-old pontiff and his calls for inclusivity and economic justice. “I desire to hear something that encourages us to recognize our poverty and woundedness, and then run with it.” Many young Catholics around the world have embraced Francis’ core teachings about correcting economic injustices and promoting environmental custodianship, joining church- Francis pressed those causes again Thursday, first at Catholic University, one of Portugal’s top institutions of higher learning, where he urged students to take risks and reject the temptation to merely perpetuate the status quo, or what the pope called the “present global system of elitism and inequality.” “An academic degree should not be seen merely as a license to pursue personal well-being, but as a mandate to work for a more just and inclusive — that is, truly progressive — society,” he said. “We need to align the tragedy of desertification with that of refugees, the issue of increased migration with that of a declining birth rate, and to see the material dimension of life within the greater purview of the spiritual.” Francis next met with another group of students in Cascais, a beachside resort town, at the local branch of Scolas Occurrentes, a foundation he started years ago to bring young people from different backgrounds and nationalities together. Meeting with the bishops at Lisbon’s iconic Jeronimos Monastery, Francis said the “scandal” of sexual abuse had marred the face of the Catholic Church and helped drive the faithful away.