Pope Francis comforts the parents of the slain Italian Catholic priest

Pope Francis met the parents of an Italian priest killed on Wednesday before the general audience.

The pope referred to the meeting with the family of Fr. Roberto Malgesini during the speech at the general audience of October 14 in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican.

He said: “Before entering the hall, I met the parents of that priest from the diocese of Como who was killed: he was killed precisely in his service to others. The tears of those parents are their own tears, and each of them knows how much he suffered in seeing this son who gave his life in the service of the poor “.

He continued: “When we want to console someone, we can't find the words. Because? Because we can't get to her pain, because her pains are hers, her tears are hers. The same is true for us: the tears, the pain, the tears are mine, and with these tears, with this pain I turn to the Lord “.

Malgesini, known for his care for the homeless and migrants, was stabbed to death on September 15 in the northern Italian city of Como.

The day after Malgesini's death, Pope Francis said: "I praise God for the witness, that is, for martyrdom, of this testimony of charity towards the poorest".

The pope noted that the priest had been killed "by a person in need whom he himself helped, a person with a mental illness".

Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, papal almsgiver, represented the pope at Malgesini's funeral on 19 September.

The 51-year-old priest was posthumously awarded the highest Italian honor for civil valor on 7 October.

Bishop Oscar Cantoni of Como was also present at the meeting with the pope and Malgesini's parents