Pope offers hope against darkness in Christmas Day message

Pope Francis offers hope against darkness that cloaks conflicts and relationships in large parts of world in his annual Christmas Day message.

Pope Francis delivers the Urbi et Orbi Christmas' day blessing from the main balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2019.

The traditional “Urbi et Orbi’’ Christmas message has become an occasion for popes to address suffering in the world and press for solutions. Francis was flanked by Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, president of the papal council for migrants, and Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the pope’s official almsgiver.

He noted that a number of countries in the Americas “are experiencing a time of social and political upheaval,’’ citing “the beloved Venezuelan people, long tried by their political and social tensions.” The pope offered prayers of hope for the people of Africa, including those in Congo “torn by continuing conflicts’’ and the people of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria, where people have been “persecuted for their religious faith.’’

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