"The music of your hymns will be accompanied by tears," Pope Francis told Christians in the Middle East, in a moving letter that promises solidarity with them as they face a Christmas without shelter, driven from home by Islamic State militants.
In the letter released today Francis revealed that he followed developments in the Middle East "every day", and was close to those in Iraq and Syria who face a freezing winter without shelter or food.
He deplored the "afflictions and tribulations" that had befallen them and reached out to the many "brutally driven our of your native lands, where Christians have been present since apostolic times".
"They have been aggravated in the past months because of the continuing hostilities in the region, but especially because of the work of a newer and disturbing terrorist organisation, of previously unimaginable dimensions, which has perpetrated all kinds of abuses and inhuman acts," he said.
In a move that recalled the ecumenical theme of his recent visit to Turkey, Francis urged Christian minorities to pursue a fraternal unity born of the suffering they experienced.
"In the midst of hostility and conflicts, the communion which you experience in fraternity and simplicity is a sign of God’s Kingdom. I am gratified by the good relations and cooperation which exist between the patriarchs of the Eastern Catholic Churches and those of the Orthodox Churches, and also between the faithful of the different Churches. The sufferings which Christians endure contribute immensely to the cause of unity. It is the ecumenism of blood, which demands a trusting abandonment to the working of the Holy Spirit," he said.
He also paid tribute to efforts to foster dialogue between Christians, Jews and Muslims in the Middle East.
"You can help your Muslim fellow citizens to present with discernment a more authentic image of Islam, as so many of them desire, reiterating that Islam is a religion of peace, one which is compatible with respect for human rights and favours peaceful coexistence on the part of all. This will prove beneficial for them and for all society," he said.
After sending a "paternal embrace" to young people in the country, Francis went on to reiterate his calls for the international community to intervene by promoting peace through negotiation and diplomacy.
"I once more condemn in the strongest possible terms the traffic of arms. Instead, what are needed are plans and initiatives for peace, so as to further a global solution to the region’s problems. How much longer must the Middle East suffer from the lack of peace? We must not resign ourselves to conflicts as if change were not possible!" He insisted.
He thanked the Christians for their witness and said that he hoped to "visit and comfort" them in person.
Yesterday Pope Francis delivered his Christmas address to the Roman Curia, berating them for 15 spiritual "diseases" such as vanity that he said infected the governing body.
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