Pope Leo XIV will hold a meeting on June 11 with migrants who arrived by patera in the port of Arguineguín (Gran Canaria), as part of his trip to Spain. As explained by the Bishop of the Canary Islands, José Mazuelos, in statements to Europa Press , the Pontiff will listen to testimonies from both newly arrived people and migrants already integrated thanks to the Church’s work, in a gesture intended to offer a message of “hope” and to make this reality visible.
The choice of Arguineguín is not casual. The Canary Islands have consolidated in recent years as one of the main entry points for irregular immigration to Europe, within the framework of a particularly dangerous route marked by thousands of deaths.
Mazuelos emphasized that the Church insists on the need to “stop the Atlantic route with so many deaths,” acting in the countries of origin, without renouncing the commitment to reception and integration.
These symbolic gestures—although well-intentioned—are inscribed in a broader debate about their real effects on the migratory dynamics that have been hitting European borders for years. Frequently, the emphasis is placed on the arrival while the horror of the journey fades.
In this context, the Canary bishop hopes that the Pope’s visit, far from feeding any form of romanticization, will serve as a wake-up call that insists on the search for the common good.
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