Addressing the thousands of people who gathered in St. Peter's Square, the pope said: “Even in these days, Ukraine is under constant attack, leaving the entire population exposed to the winter cold.”
What appeal did Pope Leo XIV make regarding Ukraine?
What consequences does the war in Ukraine have for the civilian population?
What actions does the Pope encourage to take to end the war?
How did the Pope assess the role of young people in striving for peace?
Leo XIV emphasized: – I follow with pain what is happening. I am close and pray for those who suffer.
— The prolongation of hostilities with increasingly serious consequences for civilians is widening the division between nations and making a just and lasting peace more distant. I encourage everyone to further intensify efforts to end this war, he urged.
The Pope greeted the young participants of the Caravan for Peace initiative, organized by the Italian Catholic Action from Rome.
— Dear children and teenagers, thank you because you help us, adults, look at the world from a different perspective, that is, cooperation between people and different nations, he said.
He appealed: – Never use violence, neither in words nor in gestures, ever. Evil is only overcome by good.
— Together with the youth, we pray for peace in Ukraine, in the Middle East and in every region where, unfortunately, fighting continues in the name of interests that have nothing to do with nations. Peace is built in respect for nations.
In his reflections before the prayer, the Pope noted: – In our personal and ecclesial life, sometimes because of internal resistance or circumstances that we do not consider favorable, we think that it is not the right moment to proclaim the Gospel, to make a decision, to make a choice, to change the situation.
Leo XIV emphasized that Jesus, crossing the borders of his land, became close to everyone and did not exclude anyone.
— He did not come only for the one who is without blemish, but on the contrary, he enters into interpersonal relationships and life situations. We, Christians, must also overcome the temptation to close ourselves off: the Gospel must be proclaimed and lived in every circumstance and in every environment, so that it may be a leaven of fraternity and peace between persons, cultures, religions and nations, the pope said.
There were many Poles with white and red flags in St. Peter's Square.
