Pope meets Honduran president

(October 14, 2011) Pope Benedict XVI received Honduran president Porfirio Lobo Sosa in the Vatican on Thursday and expressed his pleasure that the Central American nation had found stability. Lobo won a November 2009 election, five months after the Honduran military overthrew and forced into exile democratically elected President Manuel Zelaya. Before a 23-minute closed door meeting with Lobo, the Pope told his guest, "I am happy that after the problems of the past two years, you have found stability" in Honduras. Lobo later met Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and Vatican secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Dominique Mamberti. A statement by the Holy See’s press office said that the ‘cordial talks’ noted that Honduras' relations with other countries had "brightened," a reference to the strained relations the interim government had faced after the coup. They also talked about "the great contribution the Church offers to the development of the country, especially in education and health care. The parties underscored the importance of continuing to promote reconciliation, mutual understanding, solidarity and peace in Honduras in the “undaunted pursuit of the common good," the statement said.