Pope Francis warns society against reverting to individualism after the pandemic

By Livia Borghese

Updated 11:55 AM ET, Sat June 20, 2020




Pope Francis addresses doctors and nurses from the coronavirus-ravaged Lombardy region, at the Vatican, on June 20.



Rome (CNN)Pope Francis has warned the world against returning to the "illusion of individualism" after the coronavirus pandemic ends.

Francis made a statement from the Vatican on Sunday, praising healthcare workers in Italy's Lombardy region who stood by their patients during the pandemic's "troubled months."

Lombardy was Italy's worst-affected region at the height of the pandemic.

Francis later warned people to "be careful," and not to allow individualism to again become "the guiding principle of society."

Francis also thanked priests for showing "courage and love to the people."

In April, he said the pandemic could be one of "nature's responses" to humans ignoring the current ecological crisis.

The pandemic radically changed the way the Vatican operates, forcing the Pope to celebrating Palm Sunday mass in an empty church. After months of lockdown, worshippers returned to St. Peter's Square in Vatican City at the end of May.

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