Pope Francis has received a rapturous reception after visiting one of Rio de Janeiro's favelas, telling its residents that the wealthy must do more to end the "culture of selfishness" that has left the poor on the margins of society.
It was a clear reference to the violent protests that paralysed parts of the country in recent weeks as Brazilians furious over rampant corruption and inefficiency within Brazil's political class took to the streets.
In a cold rain, the Pontiff hugged and kissed residents in Varginha, a neighbourhood in northern Rio that is part of a super-violent region known by locals as the Gaza Strip.
Despite heavy security he met young and old before blessing the altar of a tiny church that serves the community. He prayed before a replica of Brazil's patron saint, the Virgin of Aparecida, and met a family in their yellow home.
"He gave each of us a rosary, he took photos with everyone and embraced each one," said Diego Rodrigues, a 26-year-old friend of the da Penha family who received the papal visit. "I think everyone but the pope was speechless!
Francis brought a message of hope, following in the footsteps of Pope John Paul II who visited two such favelas during a 1980 trip to Brazil and Mother Teresa who visited Varginha itself in 1972. Her Missionaries of Charity order have kept a presence in the shantytown ever since.
In remarks to a crowd of several thousand residents, who slushed through a muddy football field to welcome him, Francis acknowledged that young people in particular have a sensitivity toward injustice.
"You are often disappointed by facts that speak of corruption on the part of people who put their own interests before the common good," Francis told the crowd.
"To you and all, I repeat: Never yield to discouragement, do not lose trust, do not allow your hope to be extinguished. Situations can change, people can change."
He blasted what he said was the "culture of selfishness and individualism" in calling for greater efforts to fight hunger and poverty.
"No amount of peace-building will be able to last, nor will harmony and happiness be attained in a society that ignores, pushes to the margins or excludes a part of itself," Francis said.
It was one of the highlights of Francis' week-long trip to Brazil, his first as pope and one seemingly tailor-made for the first pontiff from the Americas.
Earlier Pope Francis blessed the Olympic flag, ahead of the city's Games in 2016.
On Thursday night he will preside over a welcoming ceremony on Copacabana Beach for World Youth Day, his first official event with the hundreds of thousands of young people who have flocked to a rain-soaked Rio for the Catholic youth festival.
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