Pope Francis calls for peace on 'Easter of war' and condemns racism against refugees

Before a crowd of 50,000 worshippers in the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square, the Pope Francis qualified this Sunday’s holiday an “Easter of war" and warned that a nuclear escalation of the conflict could lead to the destruction of humanity. He compared the shock of the current war in Europe to the shock of the apostles when they saw the risen Jesus.

"Our eyes, too, are incredulous on this Easter of war. We have seen all too much blood, all too much violence. Our hearts, too, have been filled with fear and anguish, as so many of our brothers and sisters have had to lock themselves away in order to be safe from bombing," he said.

The 85-year-old Argentinian pope made this statement in his twice-yearly "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world, in Latin) after a mass.

It was the first Easter since 2019 that the public was allowed to attend following two years of COVID-19 restrictions.

“Let us all commit ourselves to imploring peace, from our balconies and in our streets,” he said. “May the leaders of nations hear people’s plea for peace.”

Racism

On Friday 15 April, the Pope Francis highlighted on Italian television channel Rai that the choice made by many countries to take in more or fewer refugees fleeing war is tinged with racism.

"People fleeing Ukraine seem to be better received than those from other regions of the world", the Pope noted, according to Belga news agency.

“Refugees are divided into categories – first class, second class – ranked according to their skin colour and country of origin, whether developed or not,” he condemned on the Italian TV channel.

Belgian and EU law

Last March, Belgian State Secretary for Asylum and Migration, Sammy Mahdi, stated that “only taking in Ukrainian refugees is illegal”. “Every refugee is equal, regardless of nationality,” his spokeswoman said.

The European Commission activated on 4 March the "Temporary Protection Directive" to grant for at least one year the rights to a residence permit in the EU, access to the labour market and housing, medical assistance, and access to education to Ukrainians, stateless persons and nationals of third countries who were residing in Ukraine before the war. 

More than five million people have fled Ukraine since the start of the war on 24 February. 

(VIV)

© Belga photo (AFP PHOTO / VATICAN MEDIA) Pope Francis delivers the Easter message from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica on April 17, 2022.