Pope Francis donates Harley Davidson motorbike to charity auction

image - Harley Davidson

Pope Francis has donated one of his two classic Harley Davidson motorbikes for charity. The bikes were a present from the manufacturers to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the iconic brand.

This summer around 35,000 bikers roared into Rome to mark the anniversary. Pope Francis blessed them in St Peter's Square, and accepted two of the latest models, for the Vatican police force.

The Bishop of Rome has now decided to auction off one of the bikes in order to raise funds for a Caritas homeless project, the 'Don Luigi di Lietro' near the Termini station in Rome which offers food and shelter for up to 1,000 people every day.

The local director of Caritas, Mgr Enrico Feroci, said: "Its a precious gift which has made us happy once again and made us feel the closeness of our bishop to the poor in Rome. We are extremely grateful."