{"id":1947,"date":"2013-01-08T01:06:00","date_gmt":"2013-01-08T01:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/pope-asks-diplomats-to-seek-peace-appeals-for-syria\/"},"modified":"2013-01-08T01:06:00","modified_gmt":"2013-01-08T01:06:00","slug":"pope-asks-diplomats-to-seek-peace-appeals-for-syria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/01\/pope-asks-diplomats-to-seek-peace-appeals-for-syria\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope asks diplomats to seek peace, appeals for Syria"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Vatican City, Jan 7, 2013 \/ 06:06 pm (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- Pope Benedict gave a wide-ranging address to a group of ambassadors and diplomats that urged an end to the \u201cslaughter\u201d in Syria and stressed the \u201cgrave responsibility\u201d to work for peace around the word.<\/p>\n

\tOn Jan. 7, ambassadors and diplomats from nearly 180 countries gathered in the Apostolic Palace\u2019s Sala Regia to hear the Pope\u2019s traditional address to members of the diplomatic corps who are accredited to the Holy See.<\/p>\n

\tThe Pope lamented the \u201cdreadful suffering\u201d of civilians in Syria, a country he said is \u201ctorn apart by endless slaughter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cI renew my appeal for a ceasefire and the inauguration as quickly as possible of a constructive dialogue aimed at putting an end to a conflict which will know no victors but only vanquished if it continues, leaving behind it nothing but a field of ruins,\u201d the Pope said Monday.<\/p>\n

\tHe asked that the officials alert their respective countries to help make essential aid available for the \u201cgrave humanitarian situation\u201d in Syria.<\/p>\n

\tAt least 60,000 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced in the 21-month conflict between the government and rebel forces.<\/p>\n

\tPope Benedict also voiced \u201cdeep concern\u201d about the Holy Land. With the United Nations\u2019 recognition of Palestine as a non-member observer state, he said, he hoped that Israelis and Palestinians will \u201ccommit themselves to peaceful coexistence\u201d in a framework of \u201ctwo sovereign states.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cJerusalem, become what your name signifies! A city of peace and not of division; a prophecy of the Kingdom of God and not a byword for instability and opposition!\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\tThe Pope said that peace must be \u201cnourished and protected by charity\u201d and that charity is \u201cat the heart\u201d of the Holy See\u2019s diplomatic activity. He noted the Catholic Church\u2019s disaster relief work, her social assistance to the needy and her educational institutions.<\/p>\n

\tThe Pope emphasized that peace is built through the protection of human beings and their fundamental rights.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThis task, even if carried out in many ways and with varying degrees of intensity, challenges all countries and must constantly be inspired by the transcendent dignity of the human person and the principles inscribed in human nature,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\tHe named respect for life as the \u201cforemost\u201d principle. He praised the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe\u2019s call for the prohibition of euthanasia, but he noted \u201cwith dismay\u201d efforts to introduce legislation that would allow or expand abortion.<\/p>\n

\tHe said vigilance is needed to ensure that a country\u2019s laws do not \u201cunjustly alter the balance between the right to life of the mother and that of the unborn child, a right belonging equally to both.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tPope Benedict\u2019s address touched on several other regions of concern.<\/p>\n

\tHe told the diplomats of his hope for \u201creconciliation\u201d and stability in Iraq. Turning to Lebanon, he asked that the religious traditions there be \u201ccultivated by all\u201d and that the country\u2019s Christians be effective witnesses for peace.<\/p>\n

\tFor North Africa, Pope Benedict asked for full citizenship and religious liberty for all members of society. He assured Egyptians of his prayers as they build new institutions in a period of political upheaval.<\/p>\n

\tHe encouraged peacemaking in sub-Saharan Africa, citing the violence and the displacement of people in the Horn of Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He lamented the regular terrorist attacks on Christians in Nigeria. He voiced hope that peace talks in the Central African Republic will prevent a return to civil war.<\/p>\n

\tThe violent social crisis in Mali, where Islamist militants have taken control of the country\u2019s north, \u201ccalls for the effective attention of the international community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\tPope Benedict\u2019s address also noted the need for economic development and investment in education to help overcome poverty, disease and social inequality.<\/p>\n

\tThe Holy See has long been a center for diplomacy and international relations. It has full diplomatic relations with 179 states, the European Union and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. It also has permanent observer status at the United Nations.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

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