2024-01-08 13:28:21
On the morning of January 8, 2024, the Holy Father met with the diplomats of various countries in the Vatican City.
C. Roubini Chinnapa9 CTC, Vatican News
In his New Year’s message to them, the main theme was the peace that the international community hopes for in a new year born amid tensions and sectarianism. The Pope thanked each of them for their efforts to establish good relations with their country and the Holy See.
The Prophetic Mission of the Holy See
Pope Francis reminded them that the one word that resonates in two important Christian feasts, Nativity and Resurrection, is peace, which is essentially a gift from God and our responsibility to embrace it and cultivate it. Therefore, the Pope said, the Holy See has a prophetic mission in the international community for that matter, which is simple and demands a lot of responsibility.
Condemning all acts of terrorism and extremism, Pope Francis laid out the conflicts on every continent one by one, stressing that this is not the way to settle disputes between peoples. Conflicts in Israel-Palestine, Lebanon, Myanmar, Russia-Ukraine, Armenia-Azerbaijan, Tigray in African countries, Ethiopia, Sudan, Cameroon, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of the Congo in the American continent, Venezuela, Guyana, Peru, and Nicaragua are among those that the Pope mentioned.
Two-state solution and special status for Jerusalem
The Pope called for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of prisoners. The Pope called for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and a special status for the city of Jerusalem, so that both countries can live in peace and security.
The Pope pointed out that civilian victims of war should not be considered “casual casualties” We are witnessing an increasingly fragmented world, and that modern wars are not targeting well-defined battlefields or soldiers alone, but are ignoring and affecting ordinary people, including hundreds of thousands of women and children. Violations of international humanitarian law are war crimes and should not only be pointed out but also prevented. The Pope underlined that the civilian victims of wars cannot be considered as “an accidental casualty”. Therefore, the international community must intervene. The Pope condemned the war, quoting Benedict XVI, as a great tragedy and a useless slaughter.
Disarmament Policymaking
Underscoring the relationship between wars and weapons, the need for policy-making for disarmament also emerged at the core of the Pope’s message. Availability of weapons will encourage its use and production, which will create doubts and divert investments. The Pope asked how many lives could be saved by investments in arms production and why they could not be used for global security. Today’s crises of food, environment, economy and healthcare know no boundaries. So the Pope called for a global fund to fight hunger.
The root causes of war must be addressed
The sawdust, the root causes of war must also be uprooted as weapons of war are abandoned to pursue peace. The pope said that the exploitation of natural resources that leads people to low wages and forced labor leads to natural disasters, poverty and migration that cannot be controlled by humans. He also pointed out the exploitation of human trafficking on migration routes and the dangerous ways of losing lives, especially the fact that the Mediterranean Sea has become a large cemetery instead of being a laboratory of peace.
Legal controlled immigration
Turning a blind eye to the great tragedies associated with immigration, we see it as a frightening invasion and forget the fact that immigrants have faces and names. The Pope emphasized that migration should be seen as something of encounter and mutual enrichment, and that it should be legally regulated and accepted, encouraged, followed by integration into society, and that the culture, feelings and security of those who undertake such a responsibility should be respected. At the same time, the Pope also pointed out that there is a need to create favorable conditions for them to stay in their country.
Don’t make life a commodity
The Pope condemned human trafficking, surrogacy and euthanasia, saying that the path to peace is to respect all aspects of life from birth in the mother’s womb and never make it a means of financial gain. In his homily, the Pope highlighted the importance of dialogue and the protection of human rights to build peace. The Pope pointed out that the organizations created after the Second World War for security, peace and cooperation are unable to unite their members and are weak in this period. Pope Francis reminded us that we need to recover their roots, spirit and values in their commitment to peace.
Peace and political, social and inter-religious dialogue
Peace requires political, social and inter-religious dialogue. The Pope, who said that politics is the highest form of worship and not the seizure of power, did not forget to underline that religious freedom and respect for minorities are important. He condemned the growing anti-Jewish sentiment and the discrimination and persecution of Christians.
Peace and Education
Highlighting the role played by education in the path of peace, the Pope explained that it is an investment in the future and in the youth, and in modern technological progress, education should adopt a method of ethics and responsibility, giving importance to the human person before algorithms and devices. Pope Francis therefore reminded us that the development of artificial intelligence at the national, international, political and social levels needs to be carefully considered to be at the service of humanity.
The Year of Jubilee: An Occasion of Graces
The Pope also spoke about the holy year that the Church observes. Jubilee is a prayer that shouts that God will not give up on man in the face of many causes that make him helpless and prays that the door of his kingdom is always open to the poor. It is an occasion of the graces of experiencing God’s mercy and His gift of peace. It is a time of justice, repentance, and reconciliation. It is a time when Christian and non-Christian alike shall put their swords into plowshares, and the nations shall lift up their swords against each other, and shall never learn to fight (Isaiah 2:4). The Pope concluded by wishing everyone peace.
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