Pope Francis Calls for Peace. In Ukraine, the Middle East, and Around the World .
"Let the weapons fall silent in tormented Ukraine! Let us have the courage to open the door to negotiations and gestures of dialogue and encounter, to arrive at a just and lasting peace", states the Pontiff in his Christmas Urbi et Orbi message , which comes the day after the opening of the Holy Door that officially launched the Jubilee.
"Let the weapons in the Middle East be silent! 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 is very serious. Let the fire cease, let the hostages be freed and let us help the population exhausted by hunger and war ", asks Bergoglio.
He then moves on to Lebanon: "I am also close to the Christian community in Lebanon, especially in the south, and to the one in Syria, in this very delicate moment. Let the doors of dialogue and peace be opened throughout the region, torn by conflict. And I also want to remember the Libyan people here, encouraging them to seek solutions that allow national reconciliation."
May the Jubilee be "a propitious time to reconcile with one's enemies and stop wars" .
"Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid! The Door is open, the door is wide open! There is no need 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 - Pope Francis emphasizes - can do everything, it unties every knot, it breaks down every wall of division, the mercy of God dissolves hatred and the spirit of revenge. Come, Jesus is the Door of Peace".
But "entering through the Door - he continues - requires the sacrifice of taking a step, it requires leaving behind disputes and divisions, to abandon oneself to the open arms of the Child who is the Prince of Peace. In 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 the divisions ."
A heartfelt appeal with a thought for Africa, caught between conflicts and health emergencies : «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 ».
"The humanitarian crisis that is affecting them is caused mainly by armed conflicts and the scourge of terrorism and is aggravated by the devastating effects of climate change - the Pontiff underlines - which cause the loss of human lives and the displacement of millions of people. I also think of the populations of the countries of the Horn of Africa for whom I implore the gifts of peace, harmony and brotherhood". Francis again invokes "the commitment of the international community to promote access to humanitarian aid for the civilian population of Sudan and to start new negotiations with a view to a
cease-fire".
Pope Francis then turns the spotlight back on a conflict forgotten by the West, that of Myanmar , and also speaks of the American continent, asking that "effective solutions in truth and justice be found as soon as possible, to promote social harmony, particularly in Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia and Nicaragua , and that efforts be made, especially in this Jubilee Year, to build the common good and rediscover the dignity of every person, overcoming political divisions".
Finally, debts: « May the Jubilee be an opportunity to forgive debts, especially those that weigh on the poorest countries ».
(Unioneonline/L)
