You're reading: Voice of America: In biblical city of Ur, Pope urges inter-religious tolerance, fraternity

Voice of America: In biblical city of Ur, Pope urges inter-religious tolerance, fraternity

Published March 7, 2021. Updated March 7 at 8:47 am

A handout image released by the press office of Iraqi Prime Minister on its Facebook page on March 5, 2021 shows Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi receiving Pope Francis upon his arrival in the capital Baghdad. - Pope Francis landed in war-battered Iraq on March 5 on the first-ever papal visit, defying security fears and the pandemic to comfort one of the world's oldest and most persecuted Christian communities. (Photo by - / IRAQI PRIME MINSTER'S OFFICE FACEBOOK PAGE / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / IRAQI PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE FACEBOOK PAGE " - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

Photo by AFP

Pope Francis has addressed an interfaith gathering of Iraq’s religious and ethnic groups in Ur, said to be the birthplace of Abraham, the common patriarch for Jews, Christians and Muslims. He drove home the need for respect and unity, and he used the opportunity to condemn violent religious extremism.