“Let the weapons be silent in the tormented Ukraine! Let us have the audacity to open the door to negotiation and gestures of dialogue and meeting, to arrive at a just and lasting peace”. The Pope said this in the Urbi et Orbi Message.
The Pope asks for peace for the Holy Land: “Let the weapons be silent in the Middle East! With my eyes fixed on the cradle of Bethlehem, I turn my thoughts to the Christian communities in Israel and Palestine, in particular to the dear community of Gaza, where the humanitarian situation it is very serious. Cease the fire, free the hostages and help the population exhausted by hunger and war”, he said in the Urbi et Orbi Message. “I am also close to the Christian community in Lebanon, especially in the south, and to that in Syria, in this delicate moment. May the doors of dialogue and peace be opened throughout the region, torn by conflict. And I also want to remember the people here Libya, encouraging the search for solutions that allow national reconciliation”, Pope Francis said.
The Jubilee must be the propitious time to reconcile with one's enemies and stop wars. The Pope said this in the Urbi et Orbi Message. “Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid! The Door is open, the door is wide open! It is not necessary to knock”, come, let us be reconciled with God, and then we will be reconciled with ourselves and we will be able to reconcile with each other, even with our enemies. The mercy of God – underlined Pope Francis – can do everything, unties every knot, breaks down every wall of division, the mercy of God dissolves hatred and the spirit of revenge. Come, Jesus is the Door of peace”. “Enter the Door – continued the Pontiff – requires the sacrifice of taking a step”, “it requires leaving disputes and divisions behind, to abandon oneself to the open arms of the Child who is the Prince of Peace. This Christmas, the beginning of the Jubilee Year, I invite every person, every people and nation to have the courage to cross the Door, to become pilgrims of hope, to silence the weapons and to overcome divisions”, the Pope's appeal.
The Pope, in the Urbi et Orbi Message, addressed a thought to the African continent, caught between health emergencies and conflicts. “May the birth of the Savior bring a time of hope to the families of thousands of children who are dying from a measles epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as to the populations of the East of that country and to those of Burkina Faso, Mali , Niger and Mozambique”, said Pope Francis. “The humanitarian crisis that affects them is mainly caused by armed conflicts and the scourge of terrorism and is aggravated by the devastating effects of climate change – underlined the Pontiff -, which cause the loss of human lives and the displacement of millions of people. I think also to the populations of the countries of the Horn of Africa for whom I implore the gifts of peace, harmony and brotherhood”. Francis once again calls for “the international community's commitment to promoting access to humanitarian aid for the civilian population of Sudan and to starting new negotiations with a view to a ceasefire”. Pope Francis then returns to shine the spotlight on a conflict forgotten by the West, that of Myanmar. “May the announcement of Christmas bring comfort to the inhabitants of Myanmar, who, due to the continuous armed clashes, suffer serious suffering and are forced to flee their homes”. In his examination of the suffering of the many peoples of the planet, the Pope also speaks of the American continent and asks that “effective solutions be found as soon as possible in truth and justice, to promote social harmony, in particular in Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia and Nicaragua, and let us work, especially in this Jubilee Year, to build the common good and rediscover the dignity of every person, overcoming political divisions”.
“May the Jubilee be an opportunity to break down all walls of separation: the ideological ones, which often mark political life, and also the physical ones”. This is the appeal launched by Pope Francis in the Urbi et Orbi Message. My thoughts turn in particular to that “division which has affected the island of Cyprus for fifty years now and which has torn its human and social fabric. I hope that we can reach a shared solution, which puts an end to the division in full respect of the rights and dignity of all Cypriot communities”.
“May the Jubilee be an opportunity to forgive debts, especially those that burden the poorest countries”: this is what the Pope asks again in this Holy Year. God “awaits us on the threshold. He awaits each of us, especially the most fragile: he awaits children, all the children who suffer from war and hunger; he awaits the elderly, us ancestors, often forced to live in conditions of solitude and abandonment ; it awaits those who have lost their homes or flee their homeland in an attempt to find a safe refuge; it awaits those who have lost or cannot find a job; it awaits those in prison who, despite everything, always remain children of God; for their faith and there are many of them.” “Every life is sacred,” he concluded.
Reproduction reserved © -
