Francis message for the 52nd World Day of Peace. In “a climate of mistrust rooted in the fear of others or of strangers, or anxiety about one’s personal security ", "our societies need “artisans of peace” who can be messengers and authentic witnesses of God the Father, who wills the good and the happiness of the human family ".
In a message to a conference promoted by FAO, Francis notes that in many places "water is contaminated, garbage accumulates, deforestation progresses, the air is stale and the soil acidified. All this generates a harmful accumulation of evils and miseries."
Francis will travel to Bulgaria and visit the Macedonian capital of Skopje.
"The lessons" learned from the two great world can "continue to convince the world’s people and their leaders of the futility of armed conflict and the need to resolve conflicts through patient dialogue and negotiation. ". No effective humanitarian solution to the mass migration crisis "can ignore our moral responsibility" to "welcome, protect, promote and integrate".
On the day dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe, Francis spoke about authentic prominence; not the kind that is full of the arrogance or humiliation for others, but the one that doesn’t fear tenderness and hugs, to restore dignity of those who have has fallen.
It is a "audacious" prayer, which contains seven questions to God. "None of us is required to embrace the theory that someone in the past has advanced, that is, prayer of supplication is a weak form of faith, whereas the most authentic prayer is of pure praise, that seeks God without the weight of any request ".
Speaking at the UN conference on migrations, the Vatican Secretary of State said that when the challenges posed by migration are not well managed, "crises can form, rhetoric can eclipse reason, and migrants can be seen more as threats than as brothers and sisters in need of solidarity and basic services.”
Faced with the "consolation of salvation", "let us bet on desolation, on problems. Let us ask the Lord in this week of preparation for Christmas not to be afraid but to allow ourselves be consoled by Him with tenderness.
Francis appeals "to those with institutional responsibilities" in his message to a conference held at the Gregorian university marking the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. When fundamental rights are violated "we are all called into question", especially Christians, he says.
Some positive steps have been taken in Tunisia, Lebanon and Qatar, but gender segregation remains in Saudi Arabia. For the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, “domestic laws must not punish criticism of religious leaders or prevent commentary on religious doctrine and tenets of faith.”
