Pope Francis wraps up Mongolia trip at new homeless shelter

Pope Francis departed Mongolia on Monday, bringing to a close his historic five-day trip to the remote Asian country.

Francis finished his visit by inaugurating the House of Mercy in Ulaanbaatar, a center providing temporary healthcare to homeless people, victims of domestic violence, and others in need.

"The true progress of a nation is not gauged by economic wealth, much less by investment in the illusory power of armaments, but by its ability to provide for the health, education and integral development of its people," Francis said at the shelter.

Mongolia's tiny Catholic community

Francis said he wanted to dispel "the myth" that the Catholic church uses charity "as if caring for others were a way of enticing people to 'join up'."

"No! Christians do whatever they can to alleviate the suffering of the needy because in the person of the poor, they acknowledge Jesus, the Son of God, and in him the dignity of each person," he said.

The majority-Buddhist nation is home to just 1,450 Catholics. Only two Mongolian men have been ordained as priests, and no Mongolian women have become nuns.

Italian priest Ernesto Viscardi, a missionary who has been based in Mongolia for 19 years, explained how he and the other 76 Catholic missionaries in the country hope to expand the church.

"We have to make this a church of Mongolia, one that has the flavor of this land, of its steppes, of its sheep, goats, of its ger," he told the Associated Press.

"We have to think about making the local church grow so that the (Mongolian) people take their church in hand," he added. "Otherwise, we colonize Mongolia anew, and that makes no sense."

zc/lo (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)