So today is Easter Sunday, one of the holiest days in Christianity. A time for many families to get together and celebrate Christ (and a few Jews to keep eating Matzah depending on the position of the lunar calendar). More importantly it is a good time to reflect on the ways of the world and the current times. Pope Benedict XVI did just that in his sermon today from the Vatican and he focused on the reality of Iraq along with the suffering that takes place on a daily basis worldwide.
From CNN:
"How many wounds, how much suffering there is in the world," the pontiff said, delivering his traditional "Urbi et Orbi" Easter address from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica as tens of thousands of pilgrims and tourists listened in the square.
Benedict read out a litany of troubling current events, saying he was thinking of the "terrorism and kidnapping of people, of the thousand faces of violence which some people attempt to justify in the name of religion, of contempt for life, of the violation of human rights and the exploitation of persons."
"Afghanistan is marked by growing unrest and instability," Benedict said. "In the Middle East, besides some signs of hope in the dialogue between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, nothing positive comes from Iraq, torn apart by continual slaughter as the civil population flees."
He singled out what he called the "catastrophic, and sad to say, underestimated, humanitarian situation" in Darfur as well as other African places of suffering, including violence and looting in Congo, fighting in Somalia -- which, he said, drove away the prospect of peace -- and the "grievous crisis" in Zimbabwe, marked by crackdowns on dissidents, a disastrous economy and severe corruption.
Kudos to the Pope for giving voice to all of the mayhem that occurs in our world. The pope directly refuted one of the White House talking points that good things happen in Iraq. The truth of the matter is that they don't. Things are only getting worse by the moment. The only trick is to actually do something to help our planet.
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