Pope on new year: Pandemic is hard, but focus on the good

V“We are still living in uncertain and difficult times due to the pandemic,” Francis said. “Many are frightened about the future and burdened by social problems, personal problems, dangers stemming from the ecological crisis, injustices and by global economic imbalances.”

Thousands of Rome residents and tourists, wearing face masks as protection against the spr ead of the coronavirus, gathered in St. Peter’s Square on a sunny, mild day to hear Francis lay out his recipe for world peace, cheering his appearance.

Peace, the pope said, “demands concrete actions. It is built by being attentive to the least, by promoting justice, with the courage to forgive, thus extinguishing the fire of hatred.”

Francis also championed embracing a positive attitude, “one that always sees, in the Church as well as in society, not the evil which divides us, but the good that unites us.”

Earlier Saturday, in his homily during a Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica, Francis publicly ushered in 2022 by praising the skills which women bring to promoting peace in the world, and he equated violence against women to an offense against God.

The Roman Catholic

Church marks Jan. 1 as a day dedicated to world peace, and the basilica ceremony a paid tribute to the Virgin Mary’s special place in the faith as the mother of Jesus.

Mothers “know how to overcome obstacles and disagreements, and to instill peace,”Francis said. “In this way, they transform problems into opportunities for rebirth and growth. They can do this because they know how to ‘keep,’ to hold together the various threads of life,” the pontiff said. “We need such people, capable of weaving the threads of communion in place of the barbed wire of conflict and division.”

He called for efforts to protect women.

“How much violence is directed against women! Enough! To hurt a woman is to insult God, who from a woman took on our humanity,” the pope said, referring to the Christian belief that Jesus was the son of God.

ATICAN CITY (AP) — In his New Year’s wishes to the world, Pope Francis encouraged people Saturday to focus on the good which unites them and decried violence against women while acknowledging that the coronavirus pandemic has left many scared and struggling amid economic inequality.