Pope Francis Gives Christmas Message From St. Peter’s Basilica

Pope Francis, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, made a call for an end to the “senseless” war in Ukraine on Sunday, December 25, in his customary Christmas speech from St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.

The 86-year-old also urged a halt to the use of “food as a weapon” and warned that the 10-month-old conflict is causing food shortages to worsen globally.

Before reciting the “Urbi et Orbi” blessing, Francis addressed the crowd of thousands of worshippers assembled in St. Peter’s Square, some of whom were holding Ukrainian flags (“to the city and the world”).

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, he has constantly called for peace while denouncing the conflict and attempting to pursue a delicate dialogue with Moscow.

In his address he said; “our Ukrainian brothers and sisters who are experiencing this Christmas in the dark and cold, far from their homes.

“May the Lord inspire us to offer concrete gestures of solidarity to assist all those who are suffering, and may he enlighten the minds of those who have the power to silence the thunder of weapons and put an immediate end to this senseless war!

“Tragically, we prefer to heed other counsels, dictated by worldly ways of thinking”, he added, recalling “with sorrow” that “the icy winds of war continue to buffet humanity.

“Our time is experiencing a grave famine of peace also in other regions and other theatres of this third world war.”

He named a number of nations troubled in this Christmas, including Lebanon, Haiti, Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Afghanistan, and Yemen.

For the first time, he also advocated for “reconciliation” in Iran, which has been shaken for the past three months by rallies led by women.

The pope advised those who were celebrating Christmas to keep all those “who go hungry while huge amounts of food daily go to waste and resources are being spent on weapons”.

He said, “The war in Ukraine has further aggravated this situation, putting entire peoples at risk of famine, especially in Afghanistan and in the countries of the Horn of Africa.

“We know that every war causes hunger and exploits food as a weapon, hindering its distribution to people already suffering.

“On this day, let us learn from the Prince of Peace (Jesus Christ) and, starting with those who hold political responsibilities, commit ourselves to make food solely an instrument of peace.”