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UK faith leaders warn against division in Christmas messages | |
(35 minutes later) | |
Faith leaders in the UK are warning in their Christmas messages about uncertainty and division in the country. | |
Introducing a Christmas morning service broadcast on BBC Radio 4, Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, said people may be feeling “unsettled” and wondering what the next 12 months would bring. | |
He also spoke of the plight of refugees, rough sleepers being “ignored by almost every passerby”, “those on the margins and those disregarded”. | |
Later, at a Eucharist service at Canterbury cathedral, Welby will call for the language of love to replace the “languages of hatred, tribalism, rivalry, materialism, pride, greed, and so many more”. | |
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster and the most senior Catholic in England and Wales, told a congregation at midnight mass on Christmas Eve that “we are in difficult times, times of uncertainty and an absence of consensus”. | |
Churches were providing help on food poverty and homelessness, he added, but more volunteers were needed. | |
“If, in the coming year, hardship increases, then we are ready to help in every way we can,” Nichols said. | |
In recent weeks, Welby has spoken of the need to “calm down the hatreds” over Brexit, and for reconciliation and restraint. | |
In one interview, he said it could take 10 years for the fractures to heal after the 2016 referendum “open[ed] so much bitterness”. | |
He repeated his view that, although he voted remain, the outcome of the referendum must be respected. Reconciliation takes time, he told ITV. | |
“It involves regret and repentance, it involves acknowledging where things went wrong, where you went wrong, where the other went wrong, it involves truth seeking, it is a process that is cautiously piled layer upon layer upon layer until you’ve built this bridge across the gap.” | |
When pressed on how long the process would take he said: “It depends on how people pursue it but 10 [years] would be good, to get to a point where we’ve put it behind us and it was no more than a painful memory.” | |
In Rome, Pope Francis attacked the “insatiable greed” of today’s consumerism, using his Christmas Eve homily to urge people to make “sharing and giving” more a part of their lives. | |
“Mankind became greedy and voracious,” the leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics said in an address to thousands of followers in St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. | “Mankind became greedy and voracious,” the leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics said in an address to thousands of followers in St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. |
“In our day, for many people, life’s meaning is found in possessing, in having an excess of material objects. | “In our day, for many people, life’s meaning is found in possessing, in having an excess of material objects. |
“An insatiable greed marks all human history, even today, when, paradoxically, a few dine luxuriantly while all too many go without the daily bread needed to survive.” | “An insatiable greed marks all human history, even today, when, paradoxically, a few dine luxuriantly while all too many go without the daily bread needed to survive.” |
The birth of Christ pointed to a new way to live “not by devouring and hoarding, but by sharing and giving”, he said. We “must not lose our footing or slide into worldliness and consumerism”, he said. | The birth of Christ pointed to a new way to live “not by devouring and hoarding, but by sharing and giving”, he said. We “must not lose our footing or slide into worldliness and consumerism”, he said. |
People should ask themselves: “Do I really need all these material objects and complicated recipes for living? Can I manage without all these unnecessary extras and live a life of greater simplicity?” | People should ask themselves: “Do I really need all these material objects and complicated recipes for living? Can I manage without all these unnecessary extras and live a life of greater simplicity?” |
Pope Francis, who turned 82 earlier this month, will deliver his sixth Urbi et Orbi address on Christmas Day to pilgrims gathered in St Peter’s Square. | Pope Francis, who turned 82 earlier this month, will deliver his sixth Urbi et Orbi address on Christmas Day to pilgrims gathered in St Peter’s Square. |
As Francis presided over celebrations in Rome, the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was in Iraq to celebrate Christmas with the Chaldean Catholic community, a clear sign of the pope’s solidarity. | As Francis presided over celebrations in Rome, the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was in Iraq to celebrate Christmas with the Chaldean Catholic community, a clear sign of the pope’s solidarity. |
Catholics are among the religious minorities devastated by Islamic State-inspired violence that has driven tens of thousands from their homes in Iraq. | Catholics are among the religious minorities devastated by Islamic State-inspired violence that has driven tens of thousands from their homes in Iraq. |
Parolin met the Iraqi prime minister, Adel AbdulMahdi, on Monday in Baghdad. | Parolin met the Iraqi prime minister, Adel AbdulMahdi, on Monday in Baghdad. |
The Vatican has for years expressed concern about the exodus of Christians from communities that have existed since the time of Jesus. | The Vatican has for years expressed concern about the exodus of Christians from communities that have existed since the time of Jesus. |
This year, Francis joined Orthodox leaders to decry what he called the “murderous indifference” of world powers to violence and suffering in the Middle East. | This year, Francis joined Orthodox leaders to decry what he called the “murderous indifference” of world powers to violence and suffering in the Middle East. |
Justin Welby | |
Christianity | |
Pope Francis | Pope Francis |
Catholicism | Catholicism |
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