On Christmas, Pope urges nations to silence guns, ‘overcome divisions’ – The National
Pope Francis in his traditional Christmas Wednesday’s message called on “all people of all nations” to find the courage to “silence the sounds of gunfire and overcome the divisions” sweeping the world from the Middle East to Ukraine, from Africa to Asia during this holy year.
The Pope’s address “Urbi et Orbi” – “To the City and the World” – serves as a summary of the troubles facing the world this year. As Christmas coincides with the start of the 2025 Holy Year of Hope, Francis called for broad reconciliation “even with our enemies.”
“I invite every individual and all people of all nations … to become pilgrims of hope, to silence the sounds of guns and to overcome differences,” the Pope told the crowd gathered below the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica.
The Pope opened the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Eve to mark the 2025 jubilee, representing the mercy of God, who “unties every knot; it breaks down every wall of division; dispels the spirit of hatred and revenge.”
He called for a ceasefire in Israel and the Palestinian territories, particularly in Gaza, where the humanitarian situation is dire, as well as in war-torn Ukraine and the Middle East, separating Christian communities in Lebanon and Syria. this is the most delicate time.”
On October 7, 2023, Francis reiterated his calls for the release of hostages taken from Israel by Hamas.
He cited the deadly measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the suffering of the people of Myanmar who have been forced to flee their homes due to “ongoing armed conflict.” At the same time, the Pope remembered the children suffering from war and hunger, the elderly living alone, those who left their homeland, lost their jobs, and were persecuted for their beliefs.
Pilgrims lined up to pass through the great Holy Door at the entrance to St. Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Day, as the jubilee is expected to bring some 32 million Catholics to Rome.
Passing through the Holy Door is a way believers can obtain an indulgence, or forgiveness of sins, during the Jubilee, which has taken place every quarter of a century since the 1300s.
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Amid fresh security fears after a deadly attack on a Christmas market in Germany, pilgrims submitted to security checks before entering the Holy Gate. Many stopped to touch the door as they passed and made the sign of the cross as they entered the basilica, which is dedicated to Saint Peter, the founder of the Roman Catholic Church.
“When you walk through the door, you feel so humbled that once you’re inside, it’s almost like a release, a release of emotion,” says pilgrim Blanca Martin of San Diego. “… It’s almost like a release of emotions, you feel that now you can leave everything in God’s hands. Look, I’m getting emotional. It’s just a great experience.”
The miracle of Krizmukka, like the coincidence of Hanukkah and Christmas
Hanukkah, Judaism’s eight-day Festival of Lights, begins this year on Christmas Day and has only occurred four times since 1900.
The calendar juxtaposition has inspired some religious leaders to host interfaith gatherings, such as last week’s Hanukkah party hosted by several Jewish organizations in Houston, Texas, which brought together members of the city’s Latino and Jewish communities for the traditional potato pancake latkes eaten on Hanukkah. , topped with guacamole and salsa.
Although Hanukkah is meant to be a joyous, celebratory holiday, rabbis note that this year comes at a time when wars are heating up in the Middle East and fears of widespread anti-Semitism are rising. The holidays rarely coincide because the Jewish calendar is based on lunar cycles and is incompatible with the Gregorian calendar, which places Christmas on December 25. The last time Hanukkah started on Christmas Day was in 2005.
Iraqi Christians are steadfast in their faith
Christians in the Nineveh Plain attended a Christmas service at the Mar Georgis Church in central Telaskaf, Iraq, on Tuesday amid security concerns about the future. “We feel like they’re going to pull the rug out from under our feet at any moment. Our fate here is unknown,” said Bayda Nadhim, a resident of Telaskaf.
Iraqi Christians, whose presence there dates back to the time of Christ, belong to a number of rites and sects. They once constituted a large minority in Iraq, estimated at around 1.4 million.
But the community has steadily declined since the 2003 US-led invasion and the 2014 sweep of the territory by the Islamic State militant group. The exact number of Christians remaining in Iraq is unknown, but it is believed to number several hundred thousand.
German celebrations were silenced by the market attack
Five people, including a 9-year-old child, were killed and 200 injured in a car attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg on Friday. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier rewrote his Christmas Day speech about the attack, saying there was “sadness, pain, horror and misunderstanding over what happened in Magdeburg.” He called on Germans to “stand together” and “hate and violence must not be the last word.”
A 50-year-old Saudi doctor, who has been practicing medicine in Germany since 2006, was arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and bodily injury. Suspect X’s account describes him as a former Muslim and is full of anti-Islamic themes. He criticized the authorities for failing to fight the “Islamization of Germany” and expressed his support for the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Barry reported from Milan. Associated Press writers Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem, Rashid Yehya in Teleskaf, Iraq, and David McHugh in Frankfurt, Germany contributed to this report.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
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