Pope Francis renews his invitation to prayer and fasting for peace in the Middle East

Pope Francis has addressed a letter “with a father’s heart” to the Catholics of the Holy Land one year after the start of the war, in which he renews his invitation this October 7 to prayer and fasting, “weapons of love that change history.”

The Holy Father begins his letter by expressing his closeness and his prayers “on this sad day” and remembering that “a year ago the fuse of hatred spread.”

This fuse, continues the Pontiff, “has not gone out, but has exploded in a spiral of violence, in the shameful inability of the international community and the most powerful countries to silence the weapons and put an end to the tragedy of war. ”.

He also emphasizes that “blood flows, as do tears; “Rage increases, along with the desire for revenge, while it seems that few care about what is most needed and what people want: dialogue, peace.”

He states that he never tires of repeating that war “is a defeat,” that weapons “do not build the future, but destroy it” and that violence “never brings peace.” However, he laments that the conflicts throughout history “seem to have taught nothing.”

He then places his gaze on the Catholics of the Holy Land, whom he refers to as “a defenseless flock, thirsty for peace,” while thanking them for their desire to remain in their lands and because “they know how to pray and love despite of everything”.

For Pope Francis, these Catholics are also “a seed loved by God,” which apparently, “smothered by the earth that covers it, always finds its way upward, toward the light, to bear fruit and give life.”

In this way, he points out that “they do not allow themselves to be swallowed up by the darkness that surrounds them, but, planted in their sacred lands, they become sprouts of hope, because the light of faith leads them to witness love while speaking of hate, the encounter while the conflict spreads, the unity while everything is oriented towards confrontation.”

Faced with the inability to find peace, he highlights that “we, Christians” must not tire of asking God for it.

For this reason, he specifies that today he has invited all the faithful to live a day of prayer and fasting, “the weapons of love that change history, the weapons that defeat our only true enemy: the spirit of evil that foments war.” ”.

“Please, let us dedicate time to prayer and rediscover the saving power of fasting!” exhorts the Holy Father.

Likewise, in the letter he reiterates his closeness “from the heart” to all those who “suffer from the madness of war,” including people of any confession and religion in the Middle East:

“I am with you, martyred and exhausted inhabitants of Gaza, who are in my thoughts and prayers every day. I am with you, forced to leave your homes, to leave school and work, to wander in search of a destination to escape the bombs,” he says.

He also claims to be close to the “mothers who shed tears when they see their dead or injured children, like Mary seeing Jesus; with you, little ones who inhabit the vast lands of the Middle East, where the plots of the powerful take away your right to play.”

“I am with you, who are afraid to look up at the sky, because fire falls from the sky. I am with you, who have no voice, because there is a lot of talk about plans and strategies, but little about the specific situation of those who suffer war, that which the powerful make others do; However, the implacable judgment of God weighs on them,” he warns.

I am with you, Pope Francis continues, “thirsty for peace and justice, who do not surrender to the logic of evil and, in the name of Jesus, love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them.”

“Thank you, children of peace, because you comfort the heart of God, wounded by the evil of man. And thanks to those around the world who help them; To them, who care for Christ in you who are hungry, sick, foreign, abandoned, poor and needy, I ask you to continue doing so with generosity,” he continued.

Finally, he thanks the bishops and priests “who bring the consolation of God to human loneliness” and “begs” them to look “at the holy people they are called to serve and to let their hearts be touched, letting, for the love of their faithful, all division and ambition.”

“Brothers and sisters in Jesus, I bless you and embrace you with affection, from the bottom of my heart. May the Virgin Mary, Queen of peace, take care of you. May Saint Joseph, Patron of the Church, protect you,” concludes the Holy Father.