Pope Francis met Monday with refugees in Bulgaria's showcase refugee center and told them they are bearing the "cross of humanity," after he urged the migrant-skeptic government to not close its eyes to their suffering.
Children from Iraq, Pakistan and elsewhere sang for Francis and gave him drawings during a visit to the Vrazhdebna center, located in a school refurbished with EU funds on the outskirts of the Bulgarian capital, Sofia.
Francis thanked the children for their joy and hope, and told them that he knows well the pain of leaving behind one's country.
He compared their suffering to the cross Christ bore.
"Today, the world of migrants and refugees is a kind of cross, the cross of humanity," Francis said.
"It's a cross that many people suffer."