After a meeting with the US Secretary of State, Pope Francis presided over the weekly public catechesis.
He made little mention of issues such as the cease-fire in the Middle East and limited himself to insisting on his plea for peace.
“Let us also pray for peace in the Holy Land. Nazareth, Palestine, Israel. Let there be peace. People are suffering a lot,” he said.
The pontiff did spend more time talking about the situation in Ukraine. He asked the young people present in the square to pray intensely.
“And you, children, young people, think of the Ukrainian children and boys who are suffering this period without heating with a very hard, very strong winter. Pray for Ukrainian children and young people,” he said.
Pope Francis also announced that as of next week the public catechesis would also be translated into Chinese. One more gesture of closeness to the Catholics of the Far East.