Pope prays for Ukrainian plane crash victims
Pope Francis has offered his prayers for the souls of the 176 passengers of a Ukrainian International Airlines flight, who died when the plane crashed near Tehran, Iran last week. The crash took place on January 8, approximately 10 minutes after the plane took off from Imam Khomeini international airport at 6.12 am local time.
“Pope Francis commends the souls of the deceased to the merciful love of the Almighty, and he sends condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives,” stated a January 8 message.
Signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the telegram said the Pope heard the news with “deep sadness”.
“Upon all affected by this tragedy, His Holiness invokes God’s blessings of strength and peace,” it concluded.
The plane was bound for Kyiv, Ukraine when it was shot down, killing 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, four Afghans, three Germans, and three Britons, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said.
Nine of the 11 Ukrainians killed were crew members of the plane. There were no survivors, according to Pir Hossein Kulivand, an Iranian emergency official.
Pontiff urges US and Iran to avoid ‘escalation’ of conflict
Hope is the virtue needed to approach the coming year, especially when the looming threat of war surrounds a humanity scarred by violence, Pope Francis has said.
During his annual address to diplomats accredited to the Vatican, the Pope said that with heightened tensions and acts of violence on the rise, the “new year does not seem to be marked by encouraging signs”.
Nevertheless, acknowledging the challenges confronting the world today and courageously finding ways to resolve them open a path to hope, he said in his speech.
“Precisely in light of these situations, we cannot give up hope,” the Pope said. “And hope requires courage. It means acknowledging that evil, suffering and death will not have the last word and that even the most complex questions can and must be faced and resolved.”
Among the most “troubling” conflicts emerging, he noted, are the increasing tensions between the US and Iran, which not only compromise the efforts to rebuild Iraq, but also set “the groundwork for a vaster conflict that all of us would want to avert”.
Francis creates special day to study sacred Scripture
The newly established ‘Sunday of the Word of God’ is an invitation to Catholics across the world to deepen their appreciation, love and faithful witness to God and his word, Pope Francis said.
By papal decree, the third Sunday in Ordinary Time – January 26 this year – is to be observed as a special day devoted to “the celebration, study and dissemination of the word of God”.
A day dedicated to the Bible will help the Church “experience anew how the risen Lord opens up for us the treasury of his word and enables us to proclaim its unfathomable riches before the world”, the Pope said in the document establishing the special Sunday observance.
Dioceses and parishes have been invited to respond with creative initiatives, helpful resources and renewed efforts for helping Catholics engage more deeply with the Bible at church and in their lives.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelisation, said added emphasis on the importance of the word of God is needed because “the overwhelming majority” of Catholics are not familiar with sacred Scripture.