Pope Leo decries conditions for Palestinians in Gaza
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25 Dec 2025, 5:22 pm
Quote:
The U.S.-born pope also lamented the situation for migrants and refugees who "traverse the American continent."
"How, then, can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold?" he asked.
Leo, celebrating his first Christmas after being elected in May by the world's cardinals to succeed the late Pope Francis, has a quieter, more diplomatic style than his predecessor and usually refrains from making political references in his sermons.
In a later Christmas blessing, the pope, who has made care for immigrants a key theme of his early papacy, also lamented the situation for migrants and refugees who "traverse the American continent".
Leo, who has in the past criticised U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, did not mention Trump. In a Christmas Eve sermon on Wednesday, the pope said refusing to help the poor and strangers was tantamount to rejecting God himself.
Leo decries 'rubble and open wounds' of war
The new pope has lamented the conditions for Palestinians in Gaza several times recently and told journalists last month that the only solution in the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people must include a Palestinian state.
In Thursday's service with thousands in St. Peter's Basilica, Leo also lamented conditions for the homeless across the globe and the destruction caused by war more generally.
"Fragile is the flesh of defenceless populations, tried by so many wars, ongoing or concluded, leaving behind rubble and open wounds," said the pope.
"Fragile are the minds and lives of young people forced to take up arms, who on the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths," he said.
Pope laments conflicts in Ukraine, Thailand and Cambodia
In an appeal on Thursday during the "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message and blessing given by the pope at Christmas and Easter, Leo called for an end to all global wars.
Speaking from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to thousands of people in the square below, he lamented conflicts, political, social or military, in Ukraine, Sudan, Mali, Myanmar, and Thailand and Cambodia, among others.
Leo said people in Ukraine, where Russian troops are threatening cities critical to the country's eastern defences, have been "tormented" by violence.
"May the clamour of weapons cease, and may the parties involved, with the support and commitment of the international community, find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue," said the pope.
For Thailand and Cambodia, where border fighting is in its third week with at least 80 killed, Leo asked that the nations' "ancient friendship" be restored, "to work towards reconciliation and peace".
"How, then, can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold?" he asked.
Leo, celebrating his first Christmas after being elected in May by the world's cardinals to succeed the late Pope Francis, has a quieter, more diplomatic style than his predecessor and usually refrains from making political references in his sermons.
In a later Christmas blessing, the pope, who has made care for immigrants a key theme of his early papacy, also lamented the situation for migrants and refugees who "traverse the American continent".
Leo, who has in the past criticised U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, did not mention Trump. In a Christmas Eve sermon on Wednesday, the pope said refusing to help the poor and strangers was tantamount to rejecting God himself.
Leo decries 'rubble and open wounds' of war
The new pope has lamented the conditions for Palestinians in Gaza several times recently and told journalists last month that the only solution in the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people must include a Palestinian state.
In Thursday's service with thousands in St. Peter's Basilica, Leo also lamented conditions for the homeless across the globe and the destruction caused by war more generally.
"Fragile is the flesh of defenceless populations, tried by so many wars, ongoing or concluded, leaving behind rubble and open wounds," said the pope.
"Fragile are the minds and lives of young people forced to take up arms, who on the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths," he said.
Pope laments conflicts in Ukraine, Thailand and Cambodia
In an appeal on Thursday during the "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message and blessing given by the pope at Christmas and Easter, Leo called for an end to all global wars.
Speaking from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica to thousands of people in the square below, he lamented conflicts, political, social or military, in Ukraine, Sudan, Mali, Myanmar, and Thailand and Cambodia, among others.
Leo said people in Ukraine, where Russian troops are threatening cities critical to the country's eastern defences, have been "tormented" by violence.
"May the clamour of weapons cease, and may the parties involved, with the support and commitment of the international community, find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue," said the pope.
For Thailand and Cambodia, where border fighting is in its third week with at least 80 killed, Leo asked that the nations' "ancient friendship" be restored, "to work towards reconciliation and peace".
In Bethlehem, Christmas celebrations make a comeback after pause in Gaza war
Quote:
Christmas started in Bethlehem more than 2,000 years ago, and now the celebration is bringing some much-needed holiday cheer right where it was born.
After years in which the horrors of the war in Gaza, 50 miles away, led to festivities to being canceled, a fragile ceasefire has brought some hope back to the city, which sits in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Christmas Eve celebrations were in full swing on Wednesday, with a band playing underneath a large Christmas tree in Manger Square, while a traditional procession from Jerusalem led by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa was welcomed into the city.
Pizzaballa called for "a Christmas full of light" and delivered greetings from the tiny Christian community in Gaza, where he held a pre-Christmas Mass on Sunday.
"We, all together, we decide to be the light, and the light of Bethlehem is the light of the world," he told the large crowd.
Ghada Dik, a 12-year-old Palestinian Christians from Jaffa, had traveled to the celebrations with her family. "To see everybody smiling, bringing the spirit back, doing this with all their hearts makes me so happy," she said.
While times are not easy, "Christmas is not only about being happy, it's about being with everybody," she added.
Bethlehem Mayor Maher Nicola Canawati told NBC News the 2023 and 2024 celebrations were canceled with a "broken heart and a broken soul," but the ongoing ceasefire had since reignited "the spirit of Christmas."
"This day means resilience, means hope, and means great things for the Palestinian people," he said.
When we see the Christmas tree again, and the lights in the streets, we feel the hope come back to our hearts," Jeris Atrash, 37, a gym trainer, told NBC News on Tuesday.
His family is among the thousands of Palestinian Christians in the Muslim-majority city. "We live together in peace," he said. "Our problem is with the Israeli government."
His wife, Sandi Qumseih, a 30-year-old a teacher, said their kids were enjoying the celebration after a difficult two years in which she "struggled to answer their innocent questions about what they see on the TV, what they hear."
"So, as a mom, I'm happy for my kids this year," she added.
Bethlehem is far from the continued dire conditions in Gaza, but war and uncertainty have still hit hard in the city, which in less turbulent times receives a steady flow of Christian pilgrims and tourists looking to set foot on the birthplace of Jesus.
Canawati, the mayor, said 4,000 Palestinians have left Bethlehem since the war in Gaza began, citing a fall in tourism as well as the hardships endured under a tightening Israeli occupation. A lot more families are "really struggling" financially, Qumseih said, as the city is reliant on income from tourism and making wood-carved souvenirs.
Atrash, Qumseih's husband, had worked in tourism until just a few years ago, when the double-barreled tragedies of Covid and the war kept millions of visitors away.
Tensions remain high across the West Bank, where attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians have reached their highest level since the United Nations humanitarian office started collecting data in 2006.
While the city is comparatively quiet, it feels like "a big jail," Atrash said, citing Israeli checkpoints and soldiers restricting travel.
Israel has long argued its security presence in the West Bank is necessary to protect Israeli settlements there.
Israel's government is dominated by far-right proponents of the settler movement; over the weekend, the Israeli Cabinet approved a plan for 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
After years in which the horrors of the war in Gaza, 50 miles away, led to festivities to being canceled, a fragile ceasefire has brought some hope back to the city, which sits in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Christmas Eve celebrations were in full swing on Wednesday, with a band playing underneath a large Christmas tree in Manger Square, while a traditional procession from Jerusalem led by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa was welcomed into the city.
Pizzaballa called for "a Christmas full of light" and delivered greetings from the tiny Christian community in Gaza, where he held a pre-Christmas Mass on Sunday.
"We, all together, we decide to be the light, and the light of Bethlehem is the light of the world," he told the large crowd.
Ghada Dik, a 12-year-old Palestinian Christians from Jaffa, had traveled to the celebrations with her family. "To see everybody smiling, bringing the spirit back, doing this with all their hearts makes me so happy," she said.
While times are not easy, "Christmas is not only about being happy, it's about being with everybody," she added.
Bethlehem Mayor Maher Nicola Canawati told NBC News the 2023 and 2024 celebrations were canceled with a "broken heart and a broken soul," but the ongoing ceasefire had since reignited "the spirit of Christmas."
"This day means resilience, means hope, and means great things for the Palestinian people," he said.
When we see the Christmas tree again, and the lights in the streets, we feel the hope come back to our hearts," Jeris Atrash, 37, a gym trainer, told NBC News on Tuesday.
His family is among the thousands of Palestinian Christians in the Muslim-majority city. "We live together in peace," he said. "Our problem is with the Israeli government."
His wife, Sandi Qumseih, a 30-year-old a teacher, said their kids were enjoying the celebration after a difficult two years in which she "struggled to answer their innocent questions about what they see on the TV, what they hear."
"So, as a mom, I'm happy for my kids this year," she added.
Bethlehem is far from the continued dire conditions in Gaza, but war and uncertainty have still hit hard in the city, which in less turbulent times receives a steady flow of Christian pilgrims and tourists looking to set foot on the birthplace of Jesus.
Canawati, the mayor, said 4,000 Palestinians have left Bethlehem since the war in Gaza began, citing a fall in tourism as well as the hardships endured under a tightening Israeli occupation. A lot more families are "really struggling" financially, Qumseih said, as the city is reliant on income from tourism and making wood-carved souvenirs.
Atrash, Qumseih's husband, had worked in tourism until just a few years ago, when the double-barreled tragedies of Covid and the war kept millions of visitors away.
Tensions remain high across the West Bank, where attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians have reached their highest level since the United Nations humanitarian office started collecting data in 2006.
While the city is comparatively quiet, it feels like "a big jail," Atrash said, citing Israeli checkpoints and soldiers restricting travel.
Israel has long argued its security presence in the West Bank is necessary to protect Israeli settlements there.
Israel's government is dominated by far-right proponents of the settler movement; over the weekend, the Israeli Cabinet approved a plan for 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
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Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity.
25 Dec 2025, 10:06 pm
It's always amusing, at least to me, whenever the Catholics who were notorious for things like burning heretics alive and spreading all dat hatred of Jews and Muslims (not to mention protecting all those pedophile priests) feel that they have the moral authority to take the high ground on any issue.
