Speaking to thousands of people below him in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis shared his wishes for peace and compassion from a window in the Vatican on Friday.
"Let's renew, to one another, the desire that that which awaits us is a little better" than the events of 2015, he said. "It is, after all, a sign of the hope that animates us and invites us all to believe in life." The pope made his comments following his New Year's Day Mass, and reiterated a message he shared during his homily, that "the enemy of peace isn't only war, but also indifference." He also spoke out against "barriers, suspicions, fears, and closures" toward people, and said that while he knows in the new year "everything won't change and that many of yesterday's problems will also retain tomorrow," he is still making a "wish sustained by real hope."
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