Pope Francis lamented Sunday that Jesus’ message of peace was being drowned out by the “futile logic of war” within the very land the place he was born, because the pontiff led the world’s Roman Catholics into Christmas.
Francis, celebrating the eleventh Christmas of his hold forth, presided at a solemn Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and spoke of the battle within the Holy Land in his homily.
“Tonight, our hearts are in Bethlehem, where the Prince of Peace is once more rejected by the futile logic of war, by the clash of arms that even today prevents him from finding room in the world,” Francis stated.
At the papal Mass for six,500 individuals in St. Peter’s Basilica and extra watching on screens within the sq. outdoors, Francis stated the actual message of Christmas is peace and love, urging individuals to not be obsessive about worldly success and the “idolatry of consumerism.”
He spoke of “the all-too-human thread that runs through history: The quest for worldly power and might, fame and glory, which measures everything in terms of success, results, numbers and figures, a world obsessed with achievement.”
Francis stated that whereas many may discover it onerous to have a good time Christmas in “this world that is so judgmental and unforgiving,” they need to attempt to bear in mind what occurred on the primary Christmas.
“Tonight, love changes history,” he stated.
Francis has made quite a few appeals for a cease-fire within the battle raging in Gaza and has referred to as for the discharge of all hostages held by Palestinian resistance teams.
In retaliation to the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion, Israel has besieged the Gaza Strip and laid a lot of it to waste, with greater than 20,400 individuals confirmed killed, in accordance with Gazan authorities, and hundreds extra believed lifeless beneath the rubble.
The overwhelming majority of the two.3 million Gazans have been pushed from their houses and the United Nations says circumstances are catastrophic.
Francis was set to ship his Christmas Day “Urbi et Orbi,” or the Papal tackle, at midday on Monday.
Source: www.dailysabah.com