Pope Benedict XVI also called for new efforts to bring peace to the Middle East and Africa.
The Pope spoke of the "many grave crises and conflicts" in the Middle East and voiced "hope that the way will be opened to a just and lasting peace".

He also deplored the conflicts in Darfur and other parts of Africa reports BBC news.

He lamented the many deaths from hunger and disease around the world in "an age of unbridled consumerism".

The Middle East turmoil was a central theme of the Pope's Christmas message.

"I place in the hands of the divine Child of Bethlehem the indications of a resumption of dialogue between the Israelis and the Palestinians, which we have witnessed in recent days, and the hope of further encouraging developments," he said.

He also issued an "appeal to all those who hold in their hands the fate of Iraq, that there will be an end to the brutal violence that has brought so much bloodshed to the country".

He said he would like to visit the Holy Land as soon as circumstances permit.

Last week, Pope Benedict XVI talked about celibacy in the priesthood, dialogue between religions, and his opposition to legal rights for gay and unmarried couples in the year-end speech Friday in Vatican City. The pontiff recalled his visits to Poland-which included a visit to the Auschwitz death camp-Spain, and Germany, and he reaffirmed the church’s position on marriage and same-sex partnerships in his Christmas address.

"I cannot silence my worry about the laws on unmarried couples," Benedict said. "Many of these couples have chosen that road because, for the time being, they don’t feel up to accepting the judicially ordered and binding cohabitation of marriage." The Italian government has promised legislation for all unmarried couples, including same-sex couples, by the end of January.

"And so joining a man and a woman and two people of the same sex becomes the same," Benedict said. "With that, the ominous theories that deny any relevance to the human person’s masculinity and femininity are tacitly confirmed." The pope also reiterated the importance of celibacy in the priesthood, noting that priests’ lives must be centered around God.

The Pope's stance amid speculation (by gay Italians) that His Holiness is one of them.

On the day Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was voted Pope, Rome's popular gay TV host Fabio Canino opened his show with a shot of pink smoke wafting from a chimney at the Vatican reports NYDN.

Canino points to the pontiff's fondness for shopping and red Prada shoes as evidence that Benedict is a kindred spirit.

Catholic League president William Donohue finds the suggestion absurd.

"So the Pope is gay because he got his shoes at Prada and likes to shop," Donohue tells NYDN.

Canino also asserts on Out.com, "Everybody knows he is gay, and his boyfriend is his private secretary, [Monsignor Georg Ganswein]."

Ganswein is a handsome, blond, 50-year-old amateur ­pilot, ­tennis player and former ski instructor.