“There will be peace when we know how to put ourselves in the place of those who suffer”

Even though the Christmas Eve ceremony ended yesterday at the stroke of midnight, the Pope woke up early on December 25 to celebrate Christmas Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. Since 1994, no Pontiff has presided over this ceremonyand perhaps that’s why St. Peter’s Basilica is packed. After inviting in the homily to reflect on the situation of the Child Jesus in the stable of Bethlehem, the Pope assured that “when the fragility of others pierces our hearts, When the pain of others shatters our solid certainties, then peace begins“.

As it is not a question of remembering Christmas as an event of the past, but rather of drawing inspiration from it to build the present and the future, he said that “since the Word (the Word of God) became flesh, his flesh speaks, crying out the divine desire to meet us. The Word has established his fragile tent among us. »How not to think about the shops in Gaza“exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold, and to those of so many other displaced people and refugees on all continents, or in the improvised shelters of thousands of homeless people in our cities?” he detailed. “Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tested by so many ongoing or completed wars, leaving rubble and open wounds.. The minds and lives of young people forced to take up arms are fragile and, being at the front, they see the absurdity of what is asked of them and the lies that permeate the grandiloquent speeches of those who order them to die.

After the ceremony He visited St. Peter’s Square in a popemobile and the surrounding streets, although the truth is that because of the rain there was fewer pilgrims than in the past, around 26,000 according to Italian police. At noon sharp, the purple curtains of the central balcony of the Vatican Basilica were opened and the Pope appeared for his first Christmas message and “Urbi et orbi” blessing, technically, “to the city of Rome and to the world.”

“Let us not allow ourselves to be overcome by indifference towards those who suffer, because God is not indifferent to our miseries,” he shouted during his annual speech in which he clarified the proposal for Christmas outside religious ceremonies. According to Leo XIV, “the path to peace is responsibility”. “If each of usat all levels, instead of accusing others, First of all, he would recognize his own faults and ask God for forgiveness, and at the same time he would put himself in the place of those who suffer.was in solidarity with the weakest and most oppressed, so the world would change“, he assured. Specifically, he said that “the way to overcome conflict, all conflict, whether interpersonal or international,” is for “every person to do their part to reject hatred, violence and confrontation, and to practice dialogue, peace and reconciliation.”

As usual, too reviewed some war and conflict situationsand to do it linked the wounds of the world to what the Child Jesus experienced. “Jesus takes upon himself our fragility, he identifies with each of us: with those who no longer have anything and who have lost everything, like the inhabitants of Gaza; with whom They suffer from hunger and poverty, like the Yemeni people; with those who flee their land in search of a future elsewhere, like the many refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean or crossing the American continent; with those who have lost their jobs and with those who are looking for one, like so many young people who have difficulty finding work; with those who are exploited, such as the countless underpaid workers; with those who are in prison and often live in inhumane conditions.

Also He prayed for specific situations in various regions, but avoided mentioning the United States.. In the case of Europe, he asked the Child Jesus “Prince of Peace to continue to inspire a community and collaborative spirit, faithful to its Christian roots and history, supportive and welcoming to those in need.” Referring to Ukraine, he demanded that “the roar of weapons cease.” and that the parties involved, with the support of the international community, find the courage to dialogue in a sincere, direct and respectful manner“.

He also called for “peace and stability for Lebanon, Palestine, Israel and Syria”, and mentioned “all Christians living in the Middle East”. “I have heard your fears and I know well your feeling of helplessness in the face of power dynamics that are beyond your control,” he assured them. He prayed for “the victims of all wars”, “especially the forgotten” and for people who “suffer because of injustice, political instability, religious persecution and terrorism”. “I remember in a particular way the brothers and sisters from Sudan, South Sudan, Mali, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo“, he clarified.

Concerning Latin America, he prayed that “the Child Jesus inspires those who have political responsibilities, so that in the face of the many challenges, space is granted to dialogue for the common good and not to ideological and partisan exclusions.” He asked “that all forms of violence in Haiti cease and that we can move forward on the path to peace and reconciliation”; for the civil war in Myanmar; for the clashes between Thailand and Cambodia, so that “the parties involved continue to fight for reconciliation and peace”; and for “the people of South Asia and Oceania, hard hit by recent and devastating natural disasters.” “Faced with such evidence, I invite everyone to renew with conviction the common commitment to help those who suffer“, he said.

As a surprise, before giving the blessing and leaving congratulated Christmas in ten languages, including Arabic and Chinese. “Merry Christmas! May the peace of Christ reign in your hearts and in your families,” he predicted in Spanish.