Pope: The World Has Chosen War and Hate: We Are All Responsible

The auto is now in the midst of of an ongoing conflict.

The country has been the scene of violence and upheaval since 2013.

Pope Francis says Christmas festivities will seem empty in a world which has chosen “war and hate”.

Catholic relations with Islam hit a low point in 2006 when Francis’ predecessor, Benedict XVI, caused storms of protest throughout the Islamic world when he made a speech that suggested to many Muslims that he believed Islam espoused violence. “As we stand before the door of this Jubilee of Mercy, let us ask that our jubilation and our joy may be the grace of the world once again being able to mourn its crimes, to weep over what it is doing through war”.

Pope Francis has condemned the attack by extremists in a Mali hotel that killed at least 19 people as he prepares to visit three African nations. It will open December 8 – the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception – and will close November 20, 2016, the Solemnity of Christ the King.

The last pontiff to visit the vehicle was St. John Paul II in 1985, as part of a larger trip to Togo, the Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Zaire and Kenya.

These women reflect a church that weeps for her departed children, he said, a church that prays and intercedes for her children, and a church that always has her heart centered on Jesus, her groom.

“At the same time I wish to encounter all the people of Kenya and Uganda, and to offer everyone a word of encouragement”, he added.

“People are extremely excited, because it’s a big honour, we feel very privileged to host the Holy Father”, said Peter Magu, a member of the organising committee for the papal visit, who has been busy preparing for the pontiff’s mass in the Nairobi slum on Friday.

During his visit, Pope Francis should speak out strongly on matters of justice, civil and political rights, religious tolerance, and respect for sexual and gender minorities, as well as other pressing human rights concerns.

Pope Francis then reminded them that the theme of his visit is “Let us pass to the other side”, saying that it invites Christian communities “to look ahead with determination and encourages each person to renew their own relationship with God and with their brothers and sisters to build a new, more just and fraternal world”.