“Jesus took upon Himself our fragility,” allowing Him to identify “with those who have nothing left and have lost everything, like the inhabitants of Gaza,” Pope Leo said today during his first Christmas Day message from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.

He is not the first to compare Jesus Christ’s suffering with that of the Palestinians. Last year, the late Pope Francis unveiled a nativity scene with “baby Jesus” lying in a manger lined with a Palestinian kaffiyeh. The message resonates with Palestinians. Bethlehem Mayor Maher Nicola Canawati, who met with Leo in September to discuss concerns over Israeli “settlements” and the diminishing numbers of Christians in the Holy Land, said in his own Christmas address:

The child of peace was born in a humble manger—a refuge in turbulent times. At that time, Bethlehem experienced persecution: Mothers trembled with fear for their children; the blood of innocents was shed. Today, the tragedy is repeating itself in Gaza.

Leo characterized the humble circumstances of Jesus’s birth as God pitching “His fragile tent” among the people, then connected it to the Palestinian cause by asking, “How, then, can we not think of the tents in Gaza, exposed for weeks to rain, wind and cold?”

The Jerusalem Post called the address “an unusually direct appeal during what is normally a solemn spiritual service” for a pope who usually “refrains from making political references.” It added:

But the new pope has also lamented the conditions for Palestinians in Gaza several times recently and told journalists last month that the only solution in the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people must include a Palestinian state.

The pope is using his Christmas address to make barely veiled accusations against the Jewish nation for the suffering in Gaza, while never even mentioning Hamas. The Israeli government refuses to agree to a Palestinian state, fearing that empowering Palestinians further will bring Hamas-like terrorism even closer to home.

The pope’s implied message is deadly. Over the centuries, Catholics have persecuted and killed Jews, blaming them for the suffering and death of Jesus. Now the pope implies that modern Israel causes the suffering of Gazans just as they caused the suffering of Christ. The hateful message that incentivized brutal pogroms and crusades is being revived in subtle and not-so-subtle ways.

Are the seeds being sown for yet another crusade? The Bible reveals that they are. Remarkably, Psalm 83 foretells that the Palestinians will play a role in this crusade and side with Catholic Europe, led by Germany. For a detailed explanation, read Chapter 4 of The King of the South.