Pope Francis announced the official start of the Jubilee, the Catholic Holy Year.

More than 25,000 faithful attended the ceremony in St. Peter’s Square and another 6,000 inside the church. Exhausted, in a wheelchair, the Pontiff tirelessly continues his mission. “The Holy Gate of Jubilee, which I opened last night, here in St. Peter’s, represents Jesus, a gate of salvation, open to allFrancis emphasized today, addressing the faithful.

In his Christmas message, the Pope asked “to silence the guns in the Middle East». “With eyes fixed on the crib of Bethlehem, the thought that goes to the Christian communities of Israel and Palestine – especially Gaza – where the humanitarian situation is very serious. Cease fire, free the hostages and help the civilian population, exhausted by hunger and warFrancis said.

At the same time, he expressed his closeness to the Christian community of Lebanon and Syria and asked “to open the gates of dialogue and peace throughout the conflict-ridden region».

Reference also to the Cyprus issue

The Argentine Pope wanted to refer in detail also to the Cyprus issue, underlining: “Tlet the Holy Year be an opportunity for the walls that divide to fall: the ideological walls, which so often decisively influence political life, and the material ones, such as the division that has existed -for fifty years- on the island of Cyprus and which it affected its social and human fabric. I express the expectation that a mutually acceptable solution can be reached, which will put an end to the division, with full respect for the rights and dignity of all Cypriot communitiesn”.

The Pontiff also asked “to silence the guns in martyred Ukraine” and “to be bold, to open the door to negotiations, with movements of dialogue and reconciliation, so that we can reach a just and lasting peace».

Finally, Francis could not forget the African continent. He wished that Christmas would bring hope to Congolese families, where thousands of children are dying from an epidemic of severe measles, as well as to the people of eastern Congo, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Mozambique.