LONDON -- King Charles III evoked memories Sunday of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, as he broadcast his first Christmas message as monarch in a speech that also paid tribute to the "selfless dedication" of Britain's public service workers, many of whom are in a fight with the government over pay.
Charles, 74, also empathized in the prerecorded message with people struggling to make ends meet "at a time of great anxiety and hardship." Like some other parts of the world, the U.K. is wrestling with high inflation that has caused a cost-of-living crisis for many households.
The king's first remarks, however, recalled his mother, who died in September at age 96 after 70 years on the throne.
"Christmas is a particularly poignant time for all of us who have lost loved ones," Charles said. "We feel their absence at every familiar turn of the season and remember them in each cherished tradition."
Charles immediately ascended to the throne upon the queen's death. His coronation ceremony is scheduled for May.
Unlike Elizabeth, who often sat at a desk to deliver the annual speech, Charles stood by a Christmas tree at St. George's Chapel, a church on the grounds of Windsor Castle where his mother and his father, Prince Philip, were buried.
Charles said he shared with his mother "a belief in the extraordinary ability of each person to touch, with goodness and compassion, the lives of others and to shine a light in the world around them."
"The essence of our community and the very foundation of our society" can be witnessed in "health and social care professionals and teachers and indeed all those working in public service whose skill and commitment are at the heart of our communities," the king said.
Strikes this month by nurses, ambulance crews, teachers, postal workers and train drivers have put pressure on U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government. Unions are seeking pay raises in line with inflation, which stood at 10.7% in November.
Soaring food and energy prices in the covid-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have created financial strains for many individuals and families.
Speaking over video footage of food banks and other charity work, Charles expressed sympathy for "those at home finding ways to pay their bills and keep their families fed and warm."
Charles also reached out to people of other faiths in the United Kingdom and across the British Commonwealth, saying the meaning of Jesus Christ's birth crosses "the boundaries of faith and belief."
The six-minute message concluded with an appeal to heed "the everlasting light" which, Charles said, was a key aspect of Elizabeth's faith in God and belief in people.
"So whatever faith you have or whether you have none, it is in this life-giving light and with the true humility that lies in our service to others that I believe we can find hope for the future," he said.
POPE'S MESSAGE
Pope Francis used his Christmas message Sunday to lament the "icy winds of war" buffeting humanity and to make an impassioned plea for an immediate end to the fighting in Ukraine, a 10-month-old conflict he decried as "senseless."
At noon in Rome, Francis delivered the traditional "to the city and to the world" speech from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica.
On a sunny day, with the midday temperature reaching nearly 60 degrees Fahrenheit, some 70,000 tourists, pilgrims and residents of the city packed St. Peter's Square to listen to the pontiff and to receive his blessing.
Francis also cited long-running conflicts in the Middle East, including in the Holy Land, "where in recent months violence and confrontations have increased, bringing death and injury in their wake." In addition, he prayed for a lasting truce in Yemen and for reconciliation in Iran and Burma and cited violence and conflicts in Africa's Sahel region.
Burma is often called Myanmar, a name ruling military authorities adopted in 1989. Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other regime opponents have refused to adopt the name change, as have the U.S. and Britain.
He lamented that on Christmas, the "path of peace" is blocked by social forces that include "attachment to power and money, pride, hypocrisy, falsehood."
"Indeed, we must acknowledge with sorrow that, even as the Prince of Peace is given to us, the icy winds of war continue to buffet humanity," Francis said.
"If we want it to be Christmas, the birth of Jesus and of peace, let us look to Bethlehem and contemplate the face of the child who is born for us," he said. "And in that small and innocent face, let us see the faces of all those children who, everywhere in the world, long for peace."
Francis urged the faithful to remember the millions of Ukrainians who were without electricity or heat Sunday because of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure, as well as the millions more living as refugees abroad or displaced within their country since the February invasion ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"Let us also see the faces of our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, who are experiencing this Christmas in the dark and cold, far from their homes due to the devastation caused by 10 months of war," the pontiff said as he gestured toward those in the crowd waving small Ukrainian flags.
The pope prayed that the Lord will "enlighten the minds of those who have the power to silence the thunder of weapons and put an immediate end to this senseless war!"'
Information for this article was contributed by Frances D'Emilio, Gregorio Borgia, Gianfranco Stara and by staff writers of The Associated Press.
Pope Francis waves to faithful at the end of the Urbi et Orbi (Latin for 'to the city and to the world' ) Christmas' day blessing from the main balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)