“We saw a lot of bloodshed, a lot of violence,” the pontiff said today in St. Peter’s Square. After two Corona failures in 2020 and 2021, believers attended the ceremony again for the first time.
Before tens of thousands of people on Easter Sunday, Pope Francis gave the “Urbi et Orbi” (“of the city and the world”) blessing in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. The faithful, who returned to participate in the celebration after the two failures of Corona in 2020 and 2021, followed the ceremony in St. The Holy Father made an urgent appeal for peace in Ukraine.
“Our eyes are in disbelief at this Easter of war. We have seen a lot of bloodshed, a lot of violence. Our hearts were filled with fear and terror as so many of our brothers and sisters had to take shelter from the bombs,” Francis said. he said.
“Bring peace to stricken Ukraine, which has suffered so much from the violence and destruction of the cruel and senseless war into which it was dragged. May a new dawn of hope soon arise in this terrible night of suffering and death! choose peace. Stop flex your muscles while people suffer,” pontifex maximus said in front of some 50,000 believers, the Vatican announced.
“I can’t help but hear screams of pain”
I carry in my heart all the many Ukrainian victims, the millions of refugees and internally displaced people, the torn families, the abandoned old people, the shattered lives and the devastated cities. Before my eyes I have the eyes of orphans fleeing the war. Looking at her, we cannot help but hear her cry of pain,” the Holy Father said.
Amid the pain of war, there is no shortage of encouraging signs, such as the open doors of many families and communities that welcome migrants and refugees across Europe. “May these many acts of charity be a blessing to our society, sometimes degenerated by so much selfishness and individualism. May these acts help to make society more receptive to everyone”, underlined Francisco.
The Pope also spoke about the situation in the Middle East, which for years has been torn apart by divisions and conflicts. He prayed for peace in Jerusalem. “May Israelis, Palestinians and all the inhabitants of the Holy City, together with pilgrims, experience the beauty of peace, live in fraternity and have free access to the Holy Places, with mutual respect for the rights of each individual,” Pope said.
Prayers also for peace in the Middle East
The pontiff called for peace and reconciliation for Lebanon, Syria and Iraq and for all Christian communities living in the Middle East. He also prayed for an end to tensions in Libya and Yemen. The pope expressed concern about the situation in Myanmar and Afghanistan, where “a tragic humanitarian crisis is ravaging the population”. He also expressed his solidarity with the populations of eastern South Africa affected by devastating floods.
In the prayers of the faithful at the Easter Mass, presided over by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square, there was also a prayer in Ukrainian: “God give our deceased brothers and sisters a share in eternal Easter”. Prayers were also said in Arabic, Chinese, German and English.
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