Merry Christmas. Peace and Social Justice

The outcome of the Constitutional Referendum, celebrated in Italy on December 4th, has left a country – our country – split and troubled. For this reason, my first wish for a merry Christmas goes to all my fellow Italians, in the hope that a synthesis between the opposed parties can be found, and that, through peace and social justice, a civil life together can be finally achieved.

There is a tight relationship between social justice and peace, and it is for this reason that my second wish goes to the politicians that will form the next Government. We all know that today’s world, fraught with so many difficulties, needs stability; however, it needs serenity, peace, and equality even more, for these are the foundations of a more just and even society.

Finally, I wish a merry Christmas to all the people affected by disability, inviting them to never give up hope, never stop to demonstrate, never cease to fight and claim for their rights, to stay united in the common struggle for freedom: we are not a world apart; quite the opposite, we are full-fledged subjects of this world.
A solidarity-based society can be built only through an equal distribution of the wealth it produces: we need a spirit of sharing, because everyone should feel honored to be able to devote his or her time and energies to those who are in need. Those who are in need, in fact, cannot wait: their need is now, and so is their right to be included in our society.

To conclude, I wish a merry Christmas to Torre Annunziata, my hometown, and to the extraordinarily generous students and teachers of the Liceo Pitagora-Croce. My heartfelt thanks for the crucial help I received from them in collecting the aids for the disabled and the medical-sanitary materials for the Caracciolina Mission of Kamole, on the Island of Idwji, as well as milk powder for the babies of Bukavu.

And a very special merry Christmas to the whole population of North Kivu, who occupied a unique place in my heart: may you find the peace you so rightfully deserve, and may this happen soon.

Merry Christmas and happy new year,
Salvatore Cimmino