Pope Francis urges Europe's Catholic churches to host refugees

Pope Francis implored Catholic institutions throughout Europe on Sunday to show mercy to the flood of refugees arriving on their shores by offering them shelter.

"May every parish, every religious community, every monastery, every sanctuary of Europe host a family, starting from my diocese of Rome," Francis said at the end of his Angelus prayers in Rome.

"The two parishes in the Vatican these days will welcome two families of refugees."

The Pope's urging came as more than 12,000 migrants poured into Austria on Sunday, the Interior Ministry said, arriving at train stations to applause, cheers and pats on the back from Austrians eager to help them.

There were similar scenes at train stations in Germany. In Saalfeld, a crowd of locals stood on the platform clapping and singing in English, "Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here" as migrants arrived.

 

German patience tried

 

Germany is attractive to refugees because of its robust economy, strong democracy and long history of taking in refugees.

The government has said it will accept 800,000 applications for asylum from refugees. A poll released by broadcaster ARD on Thursday found 88% of Germans willing to donate clothes or money to refugees, and 67% willing to volunteer to help them.

Some 5,000 migrants arrived on Sunday at the train station in Munich, according to police there. The country's interior ministry said around 8,000 arrived in southern Germany the day before.

After arriving, the people are registered, fingerprinted and brought to shelters or temporary housing such as university dorms or even shipping containers that have been converted into living spaces.

The Interior Ministry cautions, however, that the country cannot continue accepting refugees at the current pace.

"The great helpfulness that Germany has shown in these last weeks and months should not be worn thin," the ministry said in a statement Sunday. It called for all European countries to work together and share responsibility.

"Only if that is guaranteed can Germany continue its do its part in helping the large number of asylum-seekers," the statement read.

Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said as much Saturday, telling his European counterparts that Germany's acceptance of the thousands fleeing conflicts in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan must not be the practice in the coming days, according to the website of the German newspaper Die Zeit.

 

Austria winds down support

 

Like Germany, Austria also wants to see a gradual reduction in the numbers of refugees coming through.

"We have always said this is an emergency situation, which we have to handle quickly and humanely," Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann said Sunday. "We have helped more than 12,000 people in an acute situation. We must now step by step go from emergency measures to a normality that is humane and complies with the law."

The United Nations' refugee agency, UNHCR, estimates that 366,402 refugees and migrants have crossed the Mediterranean Sea to Europe this year, with 2,800 dead or missing. Those who make the crossing face uncertain futures in European nations, which differ in their approach to asylum seekers.

 

Tempers flare as standoff with migrants continues 

Austria's border with Hungary remains open to potential refugees, Austrian Interior Ministry spokesman Alexander Marakovits said Sunday, and packed buses and trains continued to arrive.

There has been an outpouring of support from Austrians, who have brought food and water and cheered for the refugees pouring onto the platform at Vienna's train station.

The Austrian Red Cross has also been on hand to provide medical supplies and warm blankets.

One recent arrival, standing with his two daughters, told CNN of the family's difficult journey through Hungary.

"We went through a torture," he said. "We walked 110 kilometers (68 miles) with the children. They didn't allow us to take cars or trains."

But the Hungarian people, he said, "were very nice. We arrived here safely, and we are comfortable here, and we like the people and the government of Austria."

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com