clipped from: www.afp.com VATICAN CITY (AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI appealed for the respect of the "dignity of children" during Midnight Mass attended by thousands at St Peter's Basilica and watched by millions more on television.
With the birth of Jesus in a stable in Bethlehem, God "teaches us respect for children," the pope said in his homily broadcast live on 73 television stations in 47 countries.
"The child of Bethlehem directs our gaze towards all children who suffer and are abused in the world, the born and the unborn," said the spiritual leader of the world's 1.1 billion Catholics.
Speaking in Italian, he pointed to "children who are placed as soldiers in a violent world ... children who have to beg ... children who suffer deprivation and hunger ... children who are unloved."
