Pope Francis met Ukrainian refugees on the second day of his visit to Hungary on Saturday, telling them a different future was possible as they described the hardships they have faced since the war began.
Francis met about 600 refugees, poor and homeless people in a visit to a Budapest church a day after warning of the dangers of rising nationalism in Europe and telling the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban that accepting migrants along with the rest of the continent would be a true sign of Christianity, Reuters wrote
Francis was serenaded by a singing band of Hungarian Roma wearing flower-patterned clothing and seemed to enjoy the music as they hovered around him while he sat in his wheelchair.
Earlier, he listened as one refugee, Oleg Yakovlev, told him how he and his wife, Lyudmila, and their five children had to leave their home city of Dnipro a year ago after Russian bombings.
"We were welcomed here and we have found a new home (but) many have suffered and suffer still because of the war," Yakovlev told the pope, describing the family's long trip to safety in Hungary.