The ordinary military archbishop for Italy, Monsignor Santo Marcianò, accompanied by the private secretary Don Santo Battaglia, arrived in Afghanistan in recent days to spend Christmas together with the Italian soldiers employed in the mission Resolute Support.
Received in Kabul by IT-SN gen. d. Antonio Bettelli, his eminence then continued the journey to Herat, home of the Italian contingent of Train Advise Assist Command West (TAAC-W). Welcomed by the commander, Gianluca Carai and by the whole family in uniform, Monsignor Marcianò visited the Camp Arena base, stopping in the places where the soldiers provide their daily service.
On the occasion of the Holy Mass, the Archbishop expressed his gratitude for the work carried out by Italian personnel in favor of the peace process and reconstruction of Afghan institutions: "You are workers of peace between people and for people. You are the ones who are most at risk and put their lives at risk; this is the very high motivation of the soldier that leads him to live for the good of others. The presence of our soldiers in Afghanistan is necessary to help a people in need of help, to guarantee social stability, the keeping of dialogue, fraternity; you are here to allow Afghans to be guaranteed fundamental human rights, those of freedom, equality, progress, respect for the dignity of women".
After moving to Kabul, Monsignor Marcianò officiated the Christmas Mass also at the chapel of the Italian embassy, bringing together the Italian community that serves at the capital.
On the occasion of the visit, gen. Antonio Bettelli underlined the sharing of Christian values with those of military ethics such as brotherhood, sacrifice, sense of duty, courage and commitment, while the military ordinary spoke words of thanks for the soldiers of the Italian contingent and renewed the message of closeness of the whole church for those who work for the least.
