The art of hope

In his annual address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI appealed to all warring nations, particularly their leaders, to put aside particular interests and to be ready to pledge themselves to the path of dialogue and reconciliation.

The Holy Father started by saying: "The international community continues to be deeply concerned about the Middle East and I am glad that the Annapolis conference pointed towards the abandonment of partisan or unilateral solutions, in favour of global approach respectful of the right and legitimate interests of all the people of the region."

He appealed to the Israelis, Palestinians and Lebanese to concentrate their energies to implement commitments made during various previous.

At the same time the Pope stated: "I invite the international community to give strong support to the Israelis and the Palestinians and to understand their respective sufferings and fears."

After assessing the serious situation in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and in various African countries, the Holy Father said: "Peace cannot be a mere word or a vain aspiration. Peace is a commitment and a manner of life which demands that the legitimate aspirations of all should be satisfied, such as access to food, water and energy, to medicine and technology, or indeed, the monitoring of climate change. Only in this way can we build the future of humanity; only in this way can we facilitate an integral development valid for today and tomorrow."

The Pope concluded thus: "Diplomacy is, in a certain sense, the art of hope. It lives from hope and seeks to discern even its most tenuous signs. Diplomacy must give hope. May God open the hearts of those who govern the family of people to the hope that never disappoints!"