Israeli officials fear the pope’s vocal criticisms and symbolic gestures - such as this year’s nativity scene in St Peter’s Square featuring baby Jesus resting on a Palestinian keffiyeh - may influence global public opinion.
Created by Bethlehem artists Johny Andonia and Faten Nastas Mitwasi, the nativity scene prominently features Palestinian materials, including olive wood, a symbol of Palestinian resilience.
During its unveiling, Pope Francis condemned the global arms industry for profiting from human suffering and reiterated his call for an end to all wars, urging the faithful to remember those suffering in the holy land.
The display, praised by many as a message of solidarity and peace, drew backlash from Israel’s supporters, who accused the Vatican of promoting a pro-Palestinian agenda.
But, security… Aren’t tens of thousands of children’s lives a small price to pay to stop the violence?
/s
Even in they old testament, only the first born children were killed.
Tell that to the 42 kids who got mauled to death by bears for making fun of someone’s hair.
That’s what the Egyptians did. When the Israelites spared the Midianite women, Moses got angry at them and commanded them to kill everyone. Except the virgin girls, probably for completely wholesome Christian reasons.
Yeah except for all those other times when everyone was slaughtered down to their animals. Or you know, that time when the entire human and air-breathing animal population of the planet except for 0.0000000001% were killed.
Yeah those plagues weren’t too bad comparatively.