VATICAN CITY - Speaking during his first face-to-face general audience with pilgrims this year, Pope Francis paid tribute to his predecessor John Paul II, recalling that Thursday is the 40th anniversary of his attempted assassination in St Peter’s Square in 1981.

  He began his speech to pilgrims gathered in the San Damaso courtyard of the Apostolic Palace with, “I am happy to resume this face-to-face meeting, because I will tell you something: it is not nice to speak in front of nothing, to a camera. It is not nice.” 

  He added how nice it was “finding people, finding you here, each one of you with your own story, people who come from all over, from Italy, from the United States, from Colombia… That little football team of four Swiss brothers, I think… who are over there… four. The little sister is missing, I hope she arrives… And seeing each one of you pleases me as we are all brothers and sisters in the Lord, and looking at each other helps us to pray for each other.”

  In his addresses to the faithful in different languages at the end of the audience he said, “I cordially greet the Polish-speaking pilgrims and visitors. Tomorrow is the liturgical Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Fatima and also the 40th anniversary of the attack on Saint John Paul II, here in the Square. He himself strongly stressed that he owed his life to the Lady of Fatima. This event makes us aware that our life and the history of the world are in the hands of God.”

   John Paul was shot four times by Turkish assassin Mehmet Ali Agca on May 13, 1981, while he was riding into St Peter’s Square in the popemobile to greet the faithful. Agca had just two years earlier shot a left-wing Turkish journalist. The pope later visited him in jail and forgave him.

ol