Vatican City, 13 April, 2022 / 11:45 am (ACI Africa).
Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the “armed aggression of these days” is “an outrage against God.”
In his general audience address on April 13, the pope contrasted the peace given by Jesus with idolatrous attitudes that lead to war.
“Jesus’ peace does not overpower others; it is never an armed peace: never! The weapons of the Gospel are prayer, tenderness, forgiveness, and freely given love for one’s neighbor, to any neighbor. This is how God’s peace is brought into the world,” he said.
“This is why the armed aggression of these days, like every war, represents an outrage against God, a blasphemous betrayal of the Lord of Passover, a preference for the face of the false god of this world over his meek one. War is always a human act, to bring about the idolatry of power.”
The pope made the comments as he gave a live-streamed catechesis in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall. After dedicating last week’s audience to his two-day trip to Malta, he focused on Holy Week, noting that it falls between two Sundays: Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday.