East Asia

During the Angelus, Pope Francis prayed for the sisters and all kidnap victims: "may they all, on the occasion of Christmas, finally return to their homes." Believers must wait for the Lord who comes with “constant joy, persevering prayer and continual thanksgiving”. The pontiff told the children from the Roman oratories, who came to the square for the blessing of the "Bambinelli", that “If we take away Jesus, what remains of Christmas? An empty holiday.” Happy birthday to Pope Francis.

In a letter in poem form, Liu Xia, wife of the great dissident, says she is "going crazy" after years living in isolation without the possibility of meeting anyone. In Shenzhen, the work of a Chinese-French artist focuses on Liu Xiaobo’s imprisonment and Nobel Prize. The author and his wife are currently in custody.

Francis met with the performers and organisers of tomorrow’s Christmas Concert in the Vatican. "There is a need today also to spread the message of peace and fraternity that is inherent in Christmas,” he said.

The authorities are urging consumer to use natural gas instead of coal to reduce pollution. However, gas prices have increased by up to 20 per cent. Hundreds of trucks carry liquified gas from Zhuhai (Guangdong) for up to 3,000 km to Hebei, Shanxi, and Hunan.

Theme studied during symposium jointly organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC) and by the Vatican Dicastery for Integral Human Development. Tracing the commitment of Churches amid rising hostility towards others, considered as enemies and foreigners. "Migrants" are an important political theme in Germany and in UK Brexit. Testimonies from Latin America and Africa. Asian experiences entrusted to the director of AsiaNews.

Francis met with a group of ambassadors, including the representatives of India, Yemen and Azerbaijan. The “centrifugal forces that would drive peoples apart are not found in their differences but in the failure to set out on the path of dialogue and understanding as the most effective means of responding to these challenges.”

Pyongyang’s threats and Hokkaido explain the choice. About 150,000 people took part in the poll.

"He is the great God who becomes small and in his smallness does not stop being great. And in this great dialectic he is small: there is the tenderness of God. The great that makes himself small and the small that is great". Which manifests itself in the wounds. " My wounds, your sores, when you meet my wound with his wound. We have been healed in their wounds".

Cai Qi, a friend of Xi Jinping, visited the Chaoyang district as the campaign against “low-end” residents continues and their neighbourhoods are demolished. Another fire at a farmhouse kills five and injures eight. Some now fear that the “cleansing” campaign will start in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen.

Yesterday, the Fed raised rates by 0.25%. A few hours later, Beijing lifted its 7-day and 28-day reverse repurchase agreements by 5 basis points. Bank of China: Only market adjustments. Attempt to limit the flow of capital out of the country.

"[T]he joy of Christmas, the joy of life, does not come from material things, but from simplicity and the gift of ourselves to others." A PIME priest who experienced his mission between Italy, Hong Kong, and China gives his thoughts and memories. The laity who consecrate their lives to evangelisation following the example of Felice Tantardini.

French President Macron, who hosted the summit, said "We are losing the battle" against global warming. The temperature should rise by 3.5 degrees Celsius. A new space observatory is planned. Climate change is the cause of increasingly frequent and severe floods, droughts, storms and heat waves.