Vatican City, May 8, 2019 / 02:56 am
Like Saints Cyril and Methodius shared the Gospel with the Slavic people in the 9th century, today the world is still in need of Christian evangelization, Pope Francis said Wednesday.
Cyril and Methodius "were able to use their culture with creativity to transmit the Christian message to the Slavic peoples; they created a new alphabet with which they translated the Bible and the liturgical texts into the Slavic language," he said May 8.
"Even today there is a need for passionate and creative evangelizers, so that the Gospel may reach those who do not yet know it and can irrigate the lands where the ancient Christian roots have dried up again."
At his weekly general audience, Pope Francis spoke about his May 5-7 visit to the countries of Bulgaria and North Macedonia, which focused on ecumenical dialogue with Orthodox Christians.