Vatican Ambassador congratulates residents of LNR on Christmas

Ambassador of the Vatican, Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti arrived in LNR and delivered a sermon during the Liturgy in one of Catholic churches of Lugansk, reports RIA Novosti.

"The primary and key purpose of the visit is to witness the closeness and affection of the Pope to the people who live here, especially on the eve of Christmas for Catholics," the Vatican ambassador told reporters in Lugansk.

The Archbishop said that the day before he had paid a visit to Donetsk and now for one day arrived in Lugansk to bless all the faithful on behalf of Pope Francis.

"The greatest joy is the possibility to bring and give you the warm embrace and the blessing of the Holy Father Pope Francis. Think about that now there is a representative of the Pope with you, because the Pope himself cannot come here now, but you should know that he would like very much to be among you," Gugerotti addressed the congregation during the sermon.

The Apostolic Nuncio said that the DNR and LNR authorities did not obstruct either the preparation or realization of visits to those areas of the Donbass.
"We even were officially met ...everything went well," said Gugerotti.