Pope urges Syria peace, condemns world of materialism and poverty in Christmas message

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis on Tuesday urged greater international efforts to bring peace to war-torn Syria so that tens of thousands of refugees could return to their country.

"May the international community work decisively for a political solution... so that the Syrian people, especially all those who were forced to leave their own lands and seek refuge elsewhere, can return to live in peace in their own country," he said.

The religious leader also has called on people in developed countries to live a simpler and less materialistic life, condemning the huge divide between the world's rich and poor.

Jesus's birth in poverty in a stable should make everyone reflect on the meaning of life, he advised.

He spoke out while leading a service in St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican for the traditional Christmas Eve Mass; it is the 82-year-old's sixth Christmas as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

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In his homily, Pope Francis expressed that the birth of Christ pointed to a new way to live "not by devouring and hoarding, but by sharing and giving".

"Let us ask ourselves: Do I really need all these material objects and complicated recipes for living? Can I manage without all these unnecessary extras and live a life of greater simplicity?' he continued.

"For many people, life's meaning is found in possessing, in having an excess of material objects. An insatiable greed marks all human history, even today, when, paradoxically, a few dine luxuriantly while all too many go without the daily bread needed to survive," he added.

The Pope will deliver his "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) message from the balcony of St Peter's today on the eve of Christmas.

Francis, the first Pope from Latin America, has made highlighting the plight of the poor a key theme of his papacy over subsequent years.

During Christmas Day Mass in 2016, he warned that the true meaning of Christmas was being drowned out by materialism; his predecessor Pope Benedict made a similar point in 2011.