VATICAN CITY (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th April, 2020) The traditional Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world) address of the Holy See for the occasion of Easter was livestreamed on Sunday from the empty St. Peter's Basilica as Pope Francis called for a global ceasefire and solidarity in times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pope Francis arrived at St. Peter's Basilica at 11 a.m. (09:00 GMT). One of the world's largest churches whose outside square is usually where tens of thousands people gather every year to celebrate Easter with the Pope, was modestly decorated with palm and olive tree branches, as well as white and yellow flowers.
After serving the liturgy, Pope Francis delivered the Urbi et Orbi message inside the basilica near St.Peter's tomb rather than from the loggia facing the piazza. After his celebratory introduction, the Pope went on to say that the holy news about the resurrection of Jesus Christ came last night into the world "already faced with epochal changes and challenges and now oppressed by a pandemic severely testing our human family."
"This is a different contagion, a message transmitted from heart to heart," Pope Francis said. "It's a contagion of hope."
He said hope and strength was what would make people withstand the pandemic when there is "no magic formula that makes problems vanish." The Pope specifically addressed doctors and medical workers, extending his gratitude for their hard work to save lives even if risking their own. He also called upon political leaders to provide all the support needed to "enable everyone to lead a dignified life."
"May Christ enlighten all who have responsibility in conflicts, that they may have the courage to support the appeal for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world," the Pope said.�
He then listed the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and eastern Ukraine, the hostilities in Iraq and Lebanon, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to say that now is the time to put down arms. The Pope also called for all terrorist attacks to stop in Africa.
Pope Francis also urged for the halt of the manufacturing and trade of weapons.
Among his other political messages was a call for help to migrants and refugees, specifically in Turkey, Libya and Greece, as well as for an urgent help to people in Venezuela.
He also accentuated the situation in the European Union, saying that the bloc is now facing "an epochal challenge on which will depend not only its future but that of the whole world."
It was due to a "concrete spirit of solidarity" that Europe was able to recover after the world war, the Pope said.
The address was broadcast live. The famous Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the Roman people) icon and the miraculous crucifix from the San Marcello al Corso church, which was publicly carried across Rome in 1522 to stop the plague, were placed near the altar at St. Peter's Basilica.
