VATICAN (CNS): Pope Francis offered his prayers and praise for former Soviet president, Mikhail Gorbachev, who died at the age of 91, on August 30 in Moscow after a long illness.
In a telegramme sent to Gorbachev’s only child, Irina Virganskaya, the pope conveyed his “heartfelt condolences” to her, all family members and those “who saw him as an esteemed statesman.” The Vatican published the telegramme on August 31.
The pope expressed his spiritual closeness during “this moment of sorrow for the death of your honorable father, Mikhail.”
The pope offered his prayers “recalling with gratitude his far-sighted commitment to harmony and fraternity among people, as well as to the progress of his own country during an era of important changes, invoking eternal peace for his soul from the good and merciful God.”
