ULAANBAATAR: Pope Francis praised the "wisdom" of the Mongolian people on Saturday, in harmony with nature and embracing spirituality, while warning the young democracy of risks such as corruption and environmental ruin.
The 86-year-old Francis, on the first papal visit to the Asian nation sandwiched between China and Russia, was feted with an official welcome ceremony that included a phalanx of Mongolian horsemen in metal armour parading past the State Palace.
The pope, who waved to the crowd in front of a massive bronze statue of Genghis Khan as a group of young Mongolian Catholics yelled 'Viva il Papa!', is seeking a neutral ally in the sensitive region as he seeks to improve Vatican relations with both of Mongolia's neighbours.
Welcomed by President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, Pope Francis called himself a "pilgrim of friendship" and extolled the virtues of the country, including its "ranchers and planters respectful of the delicate balances of the ecosystem".
Mongolia's Shamanist and Buddhist traditions of living in harmony with nature and its creatures "can contribute significantly to the urgent and no longer deferrable efforts to protect and preserve planet Earth", he said.
Francis also praised Mongolia for its religious tolerance and nuclear-free policy, but warned that corruption was "the fruit of a utilitarian and unscrupulous mentality that has impoverished whole countries".
Religions can "represent a safeguard against the insidious threat of corruption, which effectively represents a serious menace to the development of any human community", he said.
In the vast Sukhbaatar Plaza, named for a Mongol revolutionary hero, more than 1,000 pilgrims and others hoped to catch a glimpse of the leader of the world's 1.3 billion Catholics.
In the crowd was Mongolian Enkhtur Dagvadorj, who said Francis "seems a great person. He is indeed a global figure."
"Although Mongolians are Buddhists, it is lovely to receive a Pope from Rome in our country. Also, his visit is very beneficial to our country in many aspects, from reputation to the economy," he said.
The visit by the Argentine Jesuit will provide a boost to local Catholics.
The trip represents his desire to bring the Church's message to remote, largely ignored areas far from Rome, but it also has the undeniably geopolitical aim of helping the Vatican keep the door open to the greater region.
On Sunday, Francis will lead an interreligious meeting and conduct mass inside a newly built ice hockey arena. — AFP
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