It is a tradition: during his Christmas message, followed by the “Urbi et Orbi” blessing, the Pope on Friday took stock of the conflicts and evils of the world, insisting especially this year on “the need for fraternity” across continents in this time of pandemic.
"At this historic moment, marked by the ecological crisis, and by serious economic and social imbalances aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic, we need fraternity more than ever", declared the Argentine pontiff.
He called for a concrete brotherhood, going beyond family, ethnicity, religion, language or culture.
"And this is also true in the relations between peoples and nations", insisted Jorge Bergoglio.
This call for solidarity applies "especially to the most fragile people, the sick and all those who, during this period, found themselves without work or are in serious difficulty because of the economic consequences of the pandemic, as also towards women who, during these months of confinement, have suffered domestic violence ”.
From Iraq to Nagorno-Karabakh
He also expressed the hope that Christmas "will be conducive to defusing tensions throughout the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean".
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"Let us turn our gaze to the too many children who, all over the world, especially in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, are still paying the high price of war," he pleaded.
"May their faces shake the consciences of men of good will so that the causes of conflicts are tackled and that we courageously strive to build a future of peace", he added.
The Pope recently announced his intention to visit Iraq in early March, his first trip abroad since the start of the pandemic and a historic first for a sovereign pontiff.
He hoped Friday "a comfort to the Iraqi people and to all those who are committed to the path of reconciliation, in particular to the Yazidis hard hit by the last years of war".
François also had a thought for "the wounds of the beloved Syrian people who for ten years now have been exhausted by the war and its consequences, then aggravated by the pandemic".
"That Israelis and Palestinians can regain mutual trust to seek a just and lasting peace through direct dialogue capable of overcoming violence," the Pope also wished.
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He further pleaded for "peace to Libya" within the framework of the ongoing negotiations and encouraged the international community to support the Lebanese people in great difficulty.
On Thursday the Pope had already sent a Christmas letter to the Lebanese, indicating that he intended to visit their country "as soon as possible".
François also expressed his support for "the commitment of the international community and the countries concerned to continue the ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh, as also in the eastern regions of Ukraine".
America's excesses, natural disasters in Asia
He did not forget the evils of many African countries, for example by evoking Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger or Ethiopia.
He had particular mention for the inhabitants of the Cabo Delgado region, in Mozambique, "victims of the violence of international terrorism", before urging the leaders of South Sudan, Nigeria and Cameroon to continue the dialogue undertaken.
The Argentinian Jorge Bergoglio did not fail to mention “the American continent, particularly affected by the coronavirus which has exacerbated the many sufferings which oppress it, often aggravated by the consequences of corruption and drug trafficking”.
His planetary overview also covered the natural disasters of Southeast Asia, in particular the Philippines and Vietnam.
"Thinking of Asia, I cannot forget the Rohingya people", finally added François about this persecuted Muslim minority in Burma whom he had met during a trip to Bangladesh.