Catholic Information Service for Africa (Nairobi)
25 March 2008
Vacitan — Pope Benedict in his Easter message urged troubled nations around the world, including Sudan and Somalia, to seek peaceful and just solutions to their crises.
The pope prayed on Sunday that the light of the Risen Christ would stream forth so that His victory over evil and death "may also triumph in each one of us, in our families, in our cities and in our nations. Let it shine forth in every part of the world.
"In particular, how can we fail to remember certain African regions, such as Dafur and Somalia, the tormented Middle East, especially the Holy Land, Iraq, Lebanon, and finally Tibet, all of whom I encourage to seek solutions that will safeguard peace and the common good!"
Humanity, the Holy Father said, needs Christ in order to heal from many festering wounds. "How often relations between individuals, between groups and between peoples are marked not by love but by selfishness, injustice, hatred and violence! These are the scourges of humanity, open and festering in every corner of the planet, although they are often ignored and sometimes deliberately concealed; wounds that torture the souls and bodies of countless of our brothers and sisters. They are waiting to be tended and healed by the glorious wounds of our Risen Lord."
Christ is the true hope for every human being and no heart should be closed to the redeeming love of God demonstrated in the Easter event. "The death and resurrection of the Word of God incarnate is an event of invincible love; it is the victory of that Love which has delivered us from the slavery of sin and death. It has changed the course of history, giving to human life an indestructible and renewed meaning and value."
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