Pope Francis encourages Egyptian Christians to show extremism in forgiving others

Pope Francis has denounced religious extremism during his visit to Egypt, but he encouraged the country's persecuted Christians to show extremism only in forgiving those who committed wrongdoing against them.

On his second and final day in Egypt, the pope arrived at the soccer stadium in suburban Cairo to celebrate an open-air Mass for the country's tiny Catholic population.

In a homily delivered to 15,000 Catholics on Saturday, the pope reiterated his message that true religion has nothing to do with violence.

"True faith is one that makes us more charitable, more merciful, more honest and more humane. It gives us the courage to forgive those who have wronged us, to extend a hand to the fallen, to clothe the naked, to feed the fallen," Francis said, according to Religion News Service.

"God is pleased only by a faith that is proclaimed by our lives, for the only fanaticism believers can have is that of charity. Any other fanaticism does not come from God and is not pleasing to him," he added.

On the first day of his visit, Francis called on Muslim leaders to renounce violence when he addressed Islamic leaders at Cairo's famed Al-Azhar center, which trains Islamic clerics and scholars from around the world.

Security was exceptionally tight around the stadium as well as the neighborhood where the pontiff spent the night. There were uniformed and plain-clothed police at every meter or so along the motorcade route and vehicles were checked for explosives. But the pope decided to ride in a simple Fiat instead of the bullet-proof "popemobile" that was used by his predecessors on foreign trips.

On Friday, Francis expressed strong support for the government's crackdown against extremists, saying Egypt was uniquely placed to bring peace to the region and "vanquish all violence and terrorism."

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi had recently declared a state of emergency following the twin Palm Sunday attacks that claimed the lives of 75 Christians in cities north of the Egyptian capital.

ISIS took responsibility for twin bombings, as well as the attack on a police checkpoint near Saint Catherine's monastery in central Sinai that killed a policeman in April.

While the pope came to comfort the Christian community following the series of attacks, he issued a sharp message to local preachers. The pontiff told priests and seminarians to stop complaining about their troubles and lead their flocks with hope and dedication.

"Although there are many reasons to be discouraged, amid many prophets of destruction and condemnation, and so many negative and despairing voices, may you be a positive force," Francis said. "May you be sowers of hope, builders of bridges and agents of dialogue and harmony," he added.