Pope Leo XIV says suffering of innocent victims \u201churts all of humanity\u201d as he calls for end to hostilities and renewed paths to peace.<\/p>\n
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday voiced dismay over ongoing conflicts around the world, saying the suffering of innocent victims \u201churts all of humanity\u201d and urging an end to hostilities grounded in dialogue and respect for human dignity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot remain silent in the face of the suffering of so many defenseless people who are victims of these conflicts. What hurts them hurts all of humanity,\u201d the pope said after praying the Angelus on March 22.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe death and pain caused by these wars is a scandal for the entire human family and a cry that rises to God,\u201d he continued. \u201cI strongly renew my appeal to persevere in prayer, so that hostilities may cease and paths to peace may finally open up, based on sincere dialogue and respect for the dignity of every human person.\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier, in his reflection before the Angelus, the pope focused on the Gospel account of the raising of Lazarus, describing it as a sign of Christ\u2019s victory over death and the promise of eternal life received through baptism.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe account of the resurrection of Lazarus, then, invites us to listen to this profound need and, with the power of the Holy Spirit, to free our hearts from habits, conditioning, and ways of thinking which, like boulders, shut us away in the tomb of selfishness, materialism, violence, and superficiality,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn these places there is no life but only confusion, dissatisfaction, and loneliness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Quoting Jesus\u2019 command in the Gospel \u2014 \u201cCome out!\u201d \u2014 the pope said Christ calls believers to emerge from such \u201ccramped spaces,\u201d renewed by his grace, and to \u201cwalk in the light of love, as new women and men, capable of hoping and loving, without calculation and without measure, according to the model of his infinite charity.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also warned that the world seems \u201cto constantly search for novelty and change, even at the cost of sacrificing important things \u2014 time, energy, values, affections,\u201d as though \u201cfame, material goods, entertainment, and fleeting relationships could fill our hearts or make us immortal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a symptom of a longing for the infinite that each of us carries within us, a need that cannot be satisfied by passing things,\u201d he said. \u201cNothing finite can quench our inner thirst, for we are made for God, and we find no peace until we rest in him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pope concluded by entrusting the faithful to the Virgin Mary, praying that the experience of encountering the risen Christ may be renewed in them each day.<\/p>\n
This story\u00a0was first published\u00a0by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.<\/p>\n