Lenten message from Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem

"We are witnessing a renewed involvement of the international community. We thank God for this. We ask him to strengthen the leaders in their new visions" the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Michel Sabbah has said in his message for Lent 2005. The Patriarch spoke of the war in the Holy Land, while recalling that there are situations of suffering in other parts of the world. He said: "At the present time, Lent puts us in communion before God with the victims of the earthquakes and the tsunamis that have recently taken place on the two continents of Asia and Africa. It puts us in communion with the victims of incurable diseases. It puts us in communion with the victims of the injustices imposed by human beings on their brothers and sisters in the name of national interest, or in the name of pure violence as the only road to peace." The Patriarch added: "Fasting is also needed in politics, a fasting that allows those who hold power to purify their intentions and their individual or national egoism, a fasting that allows these leaders to see and understand not only that they are mandated to serve and save but also that all human beings, in all nations, are also created and loved by God. They are not divided into two camps, the good and the bad, the strong and the weak. All have received their dignity from God, and all are called to enjoy the same freedom and the same security." Source: Fides