(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis prayed the Angelus with pilgrims and tourists gathered beneath a Sun-drenched Roman sky in an unseasonably warm St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, the third day of Christmas and the Feast of the Holy Family of Nazareth.
“By the example and witness of the Holy Family,” said Pope Francis, “each family can draw valuable guidance for life and lifestyle choices, and can draw strength and wisdom for the journey of every day.” He went on to say, “Our Lady and Saint Joseph teach us to welcome children as a gift from God, to get them and rear them, cooperating in a wonderful way with the Creator’s work and giving to the world, in every child, a new smile.”
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“It is,” said Pope Francis, “in united families that children bring their small lives into full maturity, living the meaningful and effective experience of love freely given and received, of tenderness, mutual respect, mutual understanding, forgiveness and joy.”
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis appealed for Cuban migrants on Sunday, who are often victims of human traffickers, and find themselves at present stranded on the border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. He called on the countries of Central America to help the roughly five thousand migrants seeking to reach the United States via the land route to find a solution to the situation.
Speaking to pilgrims and tourists after the Angelus prayer on Sunday, Pope Francis said, “My thoughts in this moment go out to the numerous Cuban migrants who find themselves in difficulty in Central America, many of whom are victims of human trafficking: I invite the countries of the region to renew with generosity all necessary efforts in order to find a rapid solution to this humanitarian drama.”
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Mexico and several Central American countries have seen a surge in migration from Cuba as warming relations between the Communist-ruled island nation and the United States has raised the possibility that current U.S. asylum policy toward Cubans could end soon.The Nicaraguan government has proposed that the U.S. organize an airlift to bring the migrants to the United States, while the government of Costa Rica has been in conversation with Belize and Guatemala, in an effort to convince those countries to grant safe passage to the migrants that would allow them to reach Mexico.
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