On his flight to Cameroon, the next stop on his April 13–23 visit to Africa, Pope Leo XIV spoke to journalists of his great happiness with his visit to Algeria. While Islam is the official religion of Algeria, as the Pope reminded reporters, the Catholic Church has a “very small but very significant presence” in this country, which was the birthplace of St. Augustine. He thanked the Algerian government for providing a military escort for the Papal plane while he was in Algerian airspace, considering that as a sign of generosity and respect by the Algerian people and government.
“In two days in Algeria, we’ve really had a wonderful opportunity to continue to build bridges, to promote dialogue.” He pointed to the significance of his visit to the Great Mosque of Algiers, where he had said “that although we have different beliefs, we have different ways of worshiping, we have different ways of living, we can live together in peace.”
