Pope Francis celebrates rain-soaked Mass in Kenya
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From the sectionAfrica
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Out of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.Media captionHuge crowds gathered in the Kenyan capital Nairobi for a mass at a university campus.
Many thousands of people have been celebrating Mass with Pope Francis at a university campus in Kenya.
Pope Francis made a plea for traditional values, saying "the health of any society depends on the health of its families".
The Pope earlier urged Kenyans to work for peace and reconciliation on his first trip as pontiff to Africa, amid a rise in militant violence.
He arrived in Kenya on Wednesday, the first stop on a three-nation tour.
Key quotes and pictures
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Crowds in the capital, Nairobi, waited in the rain at the University of Nairobi sports ground since the early hours of Thursday morning.
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Out of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.Media captionAn elated crowd greet Pope Francis at a public Mass in downtown Nairobi
Image copyrightAFPImage captionPeople rushed to get in the queue to hear the Mass at the university
Image copyrightAFPImage captionCrowds then waited in the rain to join those inside
Image copyrightReutersImage captionPope Francis was wearing a robe that was specially embroidered for the occassionWearing a robe embroidered to look like beads worn by the Maasai, Pope Francis told them: "Our faith in God's word calls us to support families in their mission in society, to accept children as a blessing for our world, and to defend the dignity of each man and woman, for all of us are brothers and sisters in the one human family."
He also spoke about abortion and the need for a caring society: "We are also called to resist practices which foster arrogance in men, hurt or demean women, and threaten the life of the innocent unborn."
Eyewitness: Benjamin Gakuru at the Mass
Image copyrightAFPIt was raining the whole night, but people slept in the rain in order to see Pope Francis.
The Pope was very happy to see thousands and thousands and thousands of people.
They came from all corners of Kenya and other parts of the region: DR Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania.
At the Mass people were screaming and raising their flags, and everything was fantastic. People were very excited, excited, excited.
And Pope Francis appealed to young Kenyans "to shape a society which is ever more just, inclusive and respectful of human dignity".
He said they "should reject everything that leads to prejudice and discrimination".
'Be prophets of peace'
The hashtag #PapalMass has been trending on Twitter in Kenya as people have been reflecting on the event and the pontiff's message.
Gachiru said on Twitter that the mass "has reminded us of the beauty of simplicity and the power of ritual. The songs rang true to the Kenyan heart".
Amatikide Murunga said that she was "feeling very blessed and inspired by the Pope's visit to Kenya. [He is] truly a symbol of love".
Religion in sub-Saharan Africa:
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Out of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.Media captionCatholic Africa - in 60 seconds
Christian population is 517 million (63% of total)
Protestants make up more than half the number
Catholics make up about a third
Muslim population is 248 million (about 30% of total)
1.1 billion Christians expected by 2050
670 million Muslims expected by 2050
Profile: Pope Francis
Source: US-based Pew Research Center 2011 survey
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