Pope Francis will give the traditional "Urbi et orbi" blessing today, the day after his Christmas speech in which he called on the world's 1,3 billion Catholics to show "hospitality" and not be indifferent to the drama of immigrants who they are often "driven out of their land" by leaders ready to see "innocent bloodshed."
Argentine Jorge Bergoglio, the grandson of Italian immigrants, has included the issue of refugees in the priorities of his pontificate, which began almost five years ago. "No one should feel out of place on this Earth," he said in his traditional Christmas Eve speech, which precedes the Christmas message "Urbi et orbi" ("in the city and in the world"), the fifth in turn, which he will address today, in a more political tone. Another strong spiritual point of Christmas Eve was the midnight service in Bethlehem, where Jesus was born according to the New Testament, and where the tensions do not stop.
Pierbatista Pitsabala, head of the Roman Catholic Church in the Middle East, who officiated at the service, called on Christians, "concerned and perhaps terrified of their declining numbers," to show courage in an area of complete turmoil. He also denounced the wars he waged "every Herod today to become greater, to occupy more space", citing the name of the king of Judea from 37 BC. until the year of the birth of Jesus Christ.
In Bethlehem, in the West Bank today, an Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory, Pierbatista Pitsabala could not help but stress in his scheduled speech on December 6 that Donald Trump had decided to recognize Jerusalem as Jerusalem. Traditional churches have already expressed their disapproval. However, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in the Middle East insisted: "Jerusalem is a city of peace, there can be no peace if one is excluded", he said based on the principle that Jerusalem should be a city for two peoples and three religions.
"Jerusalem is our mother," and if the mother loses one of her children, "she can not find peace, so let us pray for Jerusalem," he said in a speech attended by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Trump's decision has sparked almost daily protests in the Palestinian territories and overshadowed the celebration of Christmas for Palestinian Christians.
In the Manger Square, the atmosphere was melancholy, despite the carols heard through the loudspeakers. Hundreds of Palestinians and foreign tourists defied the strong winds blowing near the Church of the Nativity - built on the site where, according to tradition, Mary gave birth to Jesus - to watch the parade of scouts. At night, the first heavy rains for a long time, made the atmosphere anything but festive. "It's sad, 'people are leaving their homes,' 'Nachil Banoura, a Palestinian Christian from Beit Sahour, told AFP.