Pope Francis Pleads, Terrorists To End Attacks Against Nigerian Christians

Pope Francis in his Sunday Easter message has pleaded for end to terrorists attacks against Christians in Nigeria and called for more attention to the hungry and neediest around the world.

The Catholic pontiff also made an Easter Sunday plea for peace and dialogue in troubled Ukraine and Syria, during and Easter Sunday service said to have been atended by well over 150,000 Catholic faithful.

Pope Francis prayed for peace in Syria and Ukraine and “an end to all war and every conflict.”

He also appealed for more medical attention for those suffering from the deadly Ebola virus in west Africa and also prayed for the protection of the most vulnerable members of society.

Francis noted that this year the Catholic church’s celebration of Easter coincided with that of Orthodox churches, which have many followers in Ukraine.
On Sunday, tourists, Romans and pilgrims, young and old, turned out for the Mass that Francis celebrated at an altar set up under a canopy on the steps of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Waving flags from the pope’s native Argentina as well as from Brazil, Mexico, Britain, Poland and many other countries, they also filled the broad boulevard leading from the square to the Tiber River.

Easter is the culmination of Holy Week and marks Christian belief that Jesus rose from the dead after his crucifixion.

According to Daily Mail report, “so great were their numbers that they overflowed from sprawling St. Peter’s Square, which was decked out with row after row of potted daffodils, sprays of blue hyacinths and bunches of white roses.”

After leading the ceremony that marks the holiest day in the Christian calendar, Pope Francis delivered his traditional blessing and address.

According to BBC, the Pope also prayed for those people around the world suffering from hunger, poverty, disease and neglect.

This is the second Easter mass and “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message 77-year-old Francis has delivered as Pope.

“Help us to overcome the scourge of hunger, aggravated by conflicts and by the immense wastefulness for which we are often responsible,” Pope Francis prayed.

He asked God to “enlighten and inspire the initiatives that promote peace in Ukraine so that all those involved... will make every effort to prevent violence and, in a spirit of unity and dialogue, chart a path for the country’s future”.

“We pray in a particular way for Syria,” he said, expressing the hope that the “defenceless civil population” will be protected from the violence and get the aid they need.

In reference to Syria, he urged the international community to “boldly negotiate the peace long awaited and long overdue”.

His message came as Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad marked Easter by visiting the ancient Christian town of Maalula.

State television said President Assad inspected a monastery damaged in the fighting that enabled his troops to recapture the town from the rebels.