logo
Weather page
GET THE APP
ePaper
google_play
app_store
  • Login
  • E-Edition
    • Marketplace
  • News
  • Sports
  • Obituaries
  • Opinion
  • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • All Listings
    • Jobs
  • Special Sections
  • Photo Gallery
  • Contests
  • Lifestyle/Entertainment
  • Games
    • News
      • Local News
      • PA State News
      • Nation/World
    • Sports
      • Local
      • College Sports
      • State
      • National
    • Obituaries
    • Opinion
      • News
        • Local News
        • PA State News
        • Nation/World
      • Sports
        • Local
        • College Sports
        • State
        • National
      • Obituaries
      • Opinion
    logo
    • Classifieds
      • Place an Ad
      • All Listings
      • Jobs
    • E-Edition
      • Marketplace
    • Subscribe
    • Login
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • All Listings
        • Jobs
      • E-Edition
        • Marketplace
      • Subscribe
      • Login
    Home News Pope's lament: Icy winds of war buffet humanity at Christmas
    Pope’s lament: Icy winds of war buffet humanity at Christmas
    Online Features, World
    December 25, 2022

    Pope’s lament: Icy winds of war buffet humanity at Christmas

    By FRANCES D'EMILIO Associated Press

    VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis used his Christmas message Sunday to lament the “icy winds of war” buffeting humanity and to make an impassioned plea for an immediate end to the fighting in Ukraine, a 10-month-old conflict he decried as “senseless.”

    At noon in Rome, Francis delivered the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” (Latin for “‘to the city and to the world”) speech from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.

    On a sunny day, with the midday temperature reaching about 15 degrees Celsius (nearly 60 F), warm for a Roman winter, some 70,000 tourists, pilgrims and residents of the city packed St. Peter’s Square to listen to the pontiff and to receive his blessing.

    Francis also cited long-running conflicts in the Middle East, including in the Holy Land, “where in recent months violence and confrontations have increased, bringing death and injury in their wake.” In addition, he prayed for a lasting truce in Yemen and for reconciliation in Iran and Myanmar, and cited violence and conflicts in Africa’s Sahel region.

    He lamented that on Christmas, the “path of peace” is blocked by social forces that include “attachment to power and money, pride, hypocrisy, falsehood.”

    “Indeed, we must acknowledge with sorrow that, even as the Prince of Peace is given to us, the icy winds of war continue to buffet humanity,” Francis said.

    “If we want it to be Christmas, the birth of Jesus and of peace, let us look to Bethlehem and contemplate the face of the child who is born for us,” he said. “And in that small and innocent face, let us see the faces of all those children who, everywhere in the world, long for peace.”

    Francis urged the faithful to remember the millions of Ukrainians who were without electricity or heating Sunday because of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure, as well as the millions more living as refugees abroad or displaced within their country since the Feb. 24 invasion ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    “Let us also see the faces of our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, who are experiencing this Christmas in the dark and cold, far from their homes due to the devastation caused by 10 months of war,” the pontiff said as he gestured toward those in the crowd waving small Ukrainian flags.

    The pope prayed that the Lord will “enlighten the minds of those who have the power to silence the thunder of weapons and put an immediate end to this senseless war!”‘

    Hobbled by a knee problem, Francis leaned on a walking stick with a pronged support base to inch forward for a better view of the crowd below.

    The first pontiff from Latin America, he prayed that Christmas would “inspire the political authorities and all people of good will in the Americas to attempt to calm the political and social tensions experienced by various countries.”

    Francis said he was particularly thinking of Haiti, the impoverished Caribbean nation where nearly 100,000 people in the capital have fled gang-related violence, according to a recent United Nations migration agency report.

    “On this day, as we sit around a well-spread table, may we not avert our gaze from Bethlehem, a town whose name means ‘house of bread,’ but think of all those, especially the children, who go hungry while huge amounts of food daily go to waste and resources are being spent on weapons.”

    “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,” Francis said.

    Early in the war, sea mines and a Russian naval blockade of Ukraine’s ports choked off shipments from the Black Sea ports of Ukraine, one of the world’s largest producers of grain and corn. An agreement brokered by Turkey and the U.N. has sought to address the problem.

    ___

    Gregorio Borgia and Gianfranco Stara contributed from Vatican City.

    Tags:

    buffet christianity christmas economics francis humanity politics ukraine war wind worship

    The Bradford Era

    Local & Social
    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store
    Latest news for you
    ‘Round the Square: More Mount Gretna missives, part 2 of 2
    Round the Square
    ‘Round the Square: More Mount Gretna missives, part 2 of 2
    July 11, 2025
    MORE LETTER: Here's the second half of the letter from Orderly L.M. Peterson, from the Pennsylvania National Guard training grounds at Camp Miner, Mou...
    Read More...
    New mother-to-be seems ungrateful
    Lifestyles
    New mother-to-be seems ungrateful
    July 11, 2025
    Dear Heloise: I hear a lot of talk about gender reveal parties, but where I'm from, there are far too many ungrateful mothers-to be. At a recent baby ...
    Read More...
    {"to-print":"To print", "bradfordera-website":"Website"}
    Parents won’t take ‘no’ for an answer from son
    Lifestyles
    Parents won’t take ‘no’ for an answer from son
    July 11, 2025
    DEAR ABBY: I have suspected for many years that my son is gay. I don't understand why he would feel he can't talk to me about his relationships. I wou...
    Read More...
    {"to-print":"To print", "bradfordera-website":"Website"}
    July: The best of the summer garden
    Lifestyles, Local News
    July: The best of the summer garden
    By REBECCA NORTON RYAN  Penn State Extension Master Gardener  
    July 11, 2025
    July is the month of the garden. Our annuals have settled nicely into their containers. With fertilizer, regular watering and deadheading they are rea...
    Read More...
    {"newsletter-daily-headlines":"Daily Headlines", "newsletters":"Newsletters", "to-print":"To print", "bradfordera-website":"Website"}
    Penguins acquire defenseman Matt Dumba from Stars
    Local Sports, Sports
    Penguins acquire defenseman Matt Dumba from Stars
    SETH RORABAUGH The Tribune-Review, Greensburg/TNS 
    July 10, 2025
    The Pittsburgh Penguins acquired defenseman Matt Dumba and a second-round selection in the 2028 NHL Draft from the Dallas Stars in exchange for defens...
    Read More...
    {"newsletter-sports":"Sports", "to-print":"To print", "bradfordera-website":"Website"}
    Blue Fins take on Bartlett & Olean Thursday
    Local Sports
    Blue Fins take on Bartlett & Olean Thursday
    July 10, 2025
    Read More...
    {"to-print":"To print", "bradfordera-website":"Website"}
    This Week's Ads
    Current e-Edition
    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store
    Already a subscriber? Click the image to view the latest e-edition.
    Don't have a subscription? Click here to see our subscription options.
    Mobile App

    Download Now

    The Bradford Era mobile app brings you the latest local breaking news, updates, and more. Read the Bradford Era on your mobile device just as it appears in print.

    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store

    Help Our Community

    Please help local businesses by taking an online survey to help us navigate through these unprecedented times. None of the responses will be shared or used for any other purpose except to better serve our community. The survey is at: www.pulsepoll.com $1,000 is being awarded. Everyone completing the survey will be able to enter a contest to Win as our way of saying, "Thank You" for your time. Thank You!

    Get in touch with The Bradford Era
    Submit Content
    • Submit News
    • Letter to the Editor
    • Place Wedding Announcement
      • Submit News
      • Letter to the Editor
      • Place Wedding Announcement
    Advertise
    • Place Birth Announcement
    • Place Anniversary Announcement
    • Place Obituary Call (814) 368-3173
      • Place Birth Announcement
      • Place Anniversary Announcement
      • Place Obituary Call (814) 368-3173
    Subscribe
    • Start a Subscription
    • e-Edition
    • Contact Us
      • Start a Subscription
      • e-Edition
      • Contact Us
    CMG | Community Media Group
    Illinois
    • Hancock Journal-Pilot
    • Iroquois Times-Republic
    • Journal-Republican
    • The News-Gazette
      • Hancock Journal-Pilot
      • Iroquois Times-Republic
      • Journal-Republican
      • The News-Gazette
    Indiana
    • Fountain Co. Neighbor
    • Herald Journal
    • KV Post News
    • Newton Co. Enterprise
    • Rensselaer Republican
    • Review-Republican
      • Fountain Co. Neighbor
      • Herald Journal
      • KV Post News
      • Newton Co. Enterprise
      • Rensselaer Republican
      • Review-Republican
    Iowa
    • Atlantic News Telegraph
    • Audubon Advocate-Journal
    • Barr’s Post Card News
    • Burlington Hawk Eye
    • Collector’s Journal
    • Fayette County Union
    • Ft. Madison Daily Democrat
    • Independence Bulletin-Journal
    • Keokuk Daily Gate City
    • Oelwein Daily Register
    • Vinton Newspapers
    • Waverly Newspapers
      • Atlantic News Telegraph
      • Audubon Advocate-Journal
      • Barr’s Post Card News
      • Burlington Hawk Eye
      • Collector’s Journal
      • Fayette County Union
      • Ft. Madison Daily Democrat
      • Independence Bulletin-Journal
      • Keokuk Daily Gate City
      • Oelwein Daily Register
      • Vinton Newspapers
      • Waverly Newspapers
    Michigan
    • Iosco County News-Herald
    • Ludington Daily News
    • Oceana’s Herald-Journal
    • Oscoda Press
    • White Lake Beacon
      • Iosco County News-Herald
      • Ludington Daily News
      • Oceana’s Herald-Journal
      • Oscoda Press
      • White Lake Beacon
    New York
    • Finger Lakes Times
    • Olean Times Herald
    • Salamanca Press
      • Finger Lakes Times
      • Olean Times Herald
      • Salamanca Press
    Pennsylvania
    • Bradford Era
    • Clearfield Progress
    • Courier Express
    • Free Press Courier
    • Jeffersonian Democrat
    • Leader Vindicator
    • Potter Leader-Enterprise
    • The Wellsboro Gazette
      • Bradford Era
      • Clearfield Progress
      • Courier Express
      • Free Press Courier
      • Jeffersonian Democrat
      • Leader Vindicator
      • Potter Leader-Enterprise
      • The Wellsboro Gazette
    © Copyright The Bradford Era 43 Main St, Bradford, PA  | Terms of Use  | Privacy Policy
    Powered by TECNAVIA