This Sunday, Pope Francis made a new call for the protection of civilians, hospitals and places of worship, also asking for the release of hostages and the guarantee of humanitarian aid in countries at war.
After praying the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope again prayed for those suffering from war and remembered Ukraine, Israel and Palestine.
Francis asked, as Christmas approaches, that the world can, “with God’s help, take concrete measures and peaceful steps.”
“It is not easy, we know. Some conflicts have deep historical roots, but we also have the testimony of men and women who have worked with wisdom and patience for peaceful coexistence. Let us follow their example. We must do everything possible to address, to eliminate the causes of conflicts,” said the Pope.
Francisco recalled that this Sunday marks the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“However, speaking of human rights, let’s protect civilians, hospitals, places of worship, let’s free the hostages and we still have to guarantee humanitarian aid,” he said.
Regarding the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Pope highlighted that “many steps forward have been taken, but there is still a long way to go and, sometimes, unfortunately” there has been a setback.
“75 years ago, on December 10, 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed. And they are like a path in which many steps have been taken, but many are still missing,” he stated.
The Pope assured that “the commitment to human rights never ends” and that is why he wanted to show his closeness to “all those who, without concrete daily proclamations, fight and speak in the first person to defend the rights of those who do not count.”
On December 10, 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted a text that brought together the different rights of human beings, starting with life, liberty and security, the first to be mentioned in its article 3.
Source: TSF
