Pope Francis has decried the plentitude of weapons in the world in general, saying: “and we ask for peace for this world subjected to arms dealers, who earn their living with the blood of men and women.”
In a Mass today at Vatican City to celebrate Easter, the Pope denounced what he called: “absurd bloodshed and all barbarous acts of violence” in Libya, convulsed by fighting fueled by tribal and militia rivalries and hoped “a common desire for peace” would prevail in Yemen, wracked by civil warfare.
He also prayed that the “roar of arms may cease” in Syria and Iraq, and that peace would come in Africa for Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan and Congo.
He praised the framework nuclear agreement with Iran as an opportunity to make the world safer, while expressing deep worry about bloodshed in Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa.
Pope Francis who delivered his sermon from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Square to tens of thousands of people, made his first public comments about the recent framework for an accord, reached in Lausanne, Switzerland, and aimed at ensuring Iran doesn’t develop a nuclear weapon.
“In hope, we entrust to the merciful Lord the framework recently agreed to in Lausanne, that it may be a definitive step toward a more secure and fraternal world.”
On Good Friday, Pope Francis chastised the international community for what he called the complicit silence about the killing of Christians and prayed that God would alleviate “the suffering of so many of our brothers persecuted because of his name.”
During Mass, the Pope was shielded from pelting rain by a canopy erected outside St. Peter’s Basilica, while prelates carried umbrellas in the yellow and white colors of the Vatican. [myad]
