Pope Leo XIV, the first pope from the United States, on Christmas Day condemned violence in Gaza, called for peace talks in Ukraine, and attacked what he called a “distorted economy” that treats people as “mere merchandise” on what is among the most solemn and spiritually profound dates on the Catholic calendar.  

The new pontiff’s usual Christmas remarks prompted unease from European media outlets, and they raised increasingly common questions about the delicate line between moral balance and political activism.

The pope said that Jesus’ birth in a stable showed that God had “pitched his tent” among the people of the world, something that should make Christians reflect on what was happening around the world.

“Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tried by so many wars, ongoing or concluded, and leaving behind rubble and open wounds,” the pope said on Christmas morning. “Fragile are the minds and lives of young people forced to take up arms, who from the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods in the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths,” he said.

The evening before, on the Christmas Eve Vigil Mass, Leo questioned the morality of valuing money over human dignity.

“While a distorted economy leads us to treat human beings as mere merchandise, God becomes like us, revealing the infinite dignity of every person,” the pope said.

Unlike Pope Francis, Leo’s predecessor, the Chicago-born pontiff has generally stayed away from overt political references in his sermons.

That means his Christmas Morning and Christmas Eve homilies were a break from his personal style as well as tradition, which says that the services around Christmas should be focused on spiritual issues. The tact caused some questioning in European media.

But they were well received by tens of thousands of faithful who gathered under grey, threatening skies for both masses, with Wednesday evening’s celebrations held inside St. Peter’s Basilica and those for Christmas morning from beneath a covered platform beneath the balustrade of the Basilica.

On Wednesday, the pope acknowledged the inclement weather.

“The Basilica of St. Peter’s is very large, but, unfortunately, it is not large enough to receive all of you,” Leo said, easily switching between English and Italian. “I admire and respect and thank you all for your wanting to be here this evening.”

In his biannual “Urbi et Orbi” (“To the City and the World”) message after Christmas mass – a more traditional forum for discussions of global matters – the pope said he prayed for “justice, peace, and stability for Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, and Syria” and he made an appeal for a ceasefire in Ukraine, asking that the “clamor of weapons” cease and that leaders of Russia, Ukraine, and the international community “engage in “sincere, direct, and respectful dialogue.”

The Christmas services came near the end of the Holy Year Jubilee, which will formally close on Jan. 6. The Jubilee was opened a year ago by Pope Francis, who died in April, requiring a rare Jubilee Year conclave, which elected the former Cardinal Robert Prevost as pope in May.