Pope Leo XIV. condemned wars and violence, appeals for the protection of Christians in the Middle East

Pope Leo XIV. on Friday he strongly condemned violence and wars, stressing that God does not bless conflict and a Christian cannot side with those who unleash war. The agencies APA and ANSA informed about it, writes TASR.

• Pope Leo XIV clearly rejected violence and war as incompatible with Christianity.
• He emphasized that no political or economic interest will prevail over the life of the weakest.
• He declared that God does not bless any armed conflict or bombing of cities.
• He used harsh words about absurd violence fueled by greed and hatred.
• He called for full religious freedom and civil rights for Christians in the Middle East.

“No interest can outweigh the lives of the weakest,” the Pope said at a meeting with bishops from Baghdad, Iraq. “Help us declare clearly that God does not bless any conflict,” he said, adding that “a Christian will never side with those who wielded the sword yesterday and are dropping the bombs today.”

Violence and hatred

Leo XIV. he criticized that the world is marked by “absurd and inhuman violence” that is fueled by greed and hatred. According to him, this particularly affects the regions considered to be the cradle of Christianity, which is currently “dishonored by the blasphemy of war and the brutality of interests that do not care about human lives.”

“It will not be military actions that will create space for freedom or a period of peace, but only the patient support of coexistence and dialogue between nations,” added the head of the Catholic Church.

Protection of Christians

The Pope also called for the protection of Christians in the Middle East. “They should be respected – not just in words. Let them have real religious freedom and full civil rights without being treated as guests or second-class citizens,” he told an audience on the occasion of the Chaldean Church’s synod of bishops electing a new patriarch.