One million faithful celebrate Pope Francis at the XXL Mass in Kinshasa – the photos One million faithful celebrate Pope Francis at the XXL Mass in Kinshasa – the photos

Already at dawn, the faithful flock to the old military airfield of Kinshasa to see the pope. Women, men and children from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) celebrate long before mass, singing, dancing and waving flags. In the DRC, more than half of the 100 million inhabitants are Catholic.

Since early morning, thousands of people have secured their spots on the tarmac of N’Dolo Airport – because Pope Francis preached there on Tuesday.

A large choir and band sang at a deafening volume for the service. Little girls in white dresses practiced dances. A few young men who couldn’t get close to the altar climbed onto old planes to catch a glimpse.

Many of the faithful wore brightly colored dresses or shirts made of fabric bearing the likeness of Francis. “Bandeko, boboto,” the pope says at the start of his sermon in Lingala, the national language of Congo, and more than a million people cheer the guest from the Vatican. Francis smiles and looks happy.

During his trip to the DRC and on Friday to South Sudan, the pope wants to promote peace and charity. Just in two countries where violence and bloodshed had increased in many places. Civil war is currently raging, especially in the east of the DRC – on the border with Rwanda and Uganda. Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi recalled on Tuesday evening how “enemies of peace” and terrorist groups from abroad threatened and attacked his fellow citizens for three decades. “Because the international community does not intervene and remains silent, tens of millions have already died,” he said.

During the service, the pope then preached to a million people about “breaking the cycle of violence and breaking the plots of hatred”. Anyone who commits acts of violence wants to use this moment as an opportunity to find peace, he says. The pope’s visit is “a sign of encouragement and comfort,” said Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, Archbishop of Kinshasa.

It was one of the largest crowds Francis had ever celebrated with. A stock exchange in the Philippine capital of Manila still holds the record, with an estimated six million people braving the rain in early 2015.

Félix lives about 300 kilometers from Kinshasa and arrived early in the morning with other young people. “Francis is a good man,” he said. “I’ve heard a lot about him, but I wanted to come here and see him for myself.” He and friends brought a poster depicting two Congolese martyrs. “We want the pope to canonize her,” says Félix. “Santi Subito” is written on the banner accordingly.

A canonization seems no mean feat compared to striving to bring peace to the entire African continent.

(yam/sda/dpa)