Pope Leo’s first Christmas sermon denounces treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and harms of wars against ‘defenseless’

Pope Leo denounced the conditions of Palestinians in Gaza in his Christmas sermon, in an unusually direct appeal during what is normally a solemn spiritual service on the day when Christians around the world celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Leo, the first pope of the United States, presided over his first Christmas mass at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on Thursday.

He said the story of Jesus’ birth in a stable showed that God had “pitched his fragile tent” among the people of the world.

“How then can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold?” he asked.

Leo, who was elected in May by cardinals around the world to succeed the late Pope Francis, has a calmer diplomatic style than his predecessor. In his sermons, Leo generally refrained from making political references.

In a subsequent Christmas blessing, the pope, who has made concern for immigrants a key theme of his papacy, also spoke of the situation of migrants and refugees who are “crossing the American continent.”

Leo, who has previously criticized Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, did not mention the US president. In his Christmas Eve sermon on Wednesday, the pope said refusing to help the poor and foreigners was tantamount to rejecting God himself.

Previous comments on the situation in Gaza

The Pope has recently repeatedly deplored the living conditions of Palestinians in Gaza.

He told reporters last month that the only solution to the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people must include a Palestinian state.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in October after two years of bombing and intense military operations, but humanitarian agencies say there is still too little aid reaching Gaza, where almost the entire population is homeless.

Pope deplores destruction caused by wars

During Thursday’s mass in front of thousands of people in St. Peter’s Basilica, Leo also lamented the living conditions of homeless people around the world and the destruction caused by the wars shaking the world.

“Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tested by so many wars, ongoing or ended, leaving behind rubble and open wounds,” the Pope said.

“Fragles are the minds and lives of the young people forced to take up arms, who, on the front line, feel the absurdity of what is asked of them and the lies that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths.”

Later, during the urbi et orbi (to the city and the world) message and blessing given by the Pope at Christmas and Easter, Leo called for an end to all world wars.

Speaking from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to thousands of people in the square below, he spoke of political, social or military conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, Mali, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia, among others.

Call for international support and “sincere” dialogue

Leo said the people of Ukraine, where Russian troops threaten towns critical to the country’s eastern defense, have been “tormented” by the violence.

“May the noise of arms cease and may the parties concerned, with the support and commitment of the international community, find the courage to engage in sincere, direct and respectful dialogue.”

For Thailand and Cambodia, where border fighting is in its third week with at least 80 dead, Leo called for the “ancient friendship” between the two countries to be restored “to work toward reconciliation and peace.”