"War is back in vogue and a zeal for war is spreading," Pope Leo XIV warned in his first address to the diplomats accredited to the Holy See, representatives of the 184 nations that have diplomatic ties with the world's smallest state.
But peace is still a "difficult yet realistic good," he insisted.
The annual meeting with this large group of diplomats occurs around New Year. Pope Leo spoke to the multi-lingual group in his native English.
Each year, this is one of the longest and most complex speeches that the Successor of Peter will give.
It is a "state of the globe" address, given with the unique insight that a pope has, drawing as he does on the inside information gathered from his representatives all over the world, as well as the men and women religious and directors of the Church's massive charity networks on the ground in nearly every setting of the globe.
An Augustinian pope draws on Augustine
Pope Leo chose to base this first address to the diplomats on St. Augustine's well known treatise on the Two Cities -- the city of God and the city of the world.
While Leo draws on Augustine for nearly every address to the faithful, this address to peoples representing all religions showed his esteem for Augustine as a voice to give insight to all humanity.
One of the main considerations he offered was a reflection on the importance of language, saying, "Rediscovering the meaning of words is perhaps one of the primary challenges of our time."
In this regard, he warned against words losing "their connection to reality, and reality itself becom[ing] debatable and ultimately incommunicable."
Here is offered a reflection from St. Augustine, which concludes "that a man would more readily converse with his dog than with a foreigner!"
The Holy Father mentioned several specific conflicts, starting with Ukraine and the Holy Land, but then turning quickly to Venezuela, before mentioning situations in Africa and East Asia.
Peace
"We are, in Pope Francis’s well-known expression, not in an era of change but in a change of era," Leo said.
He lamented that the "principle established after the Second World War, which prohibited nations from using force to violate the borders of others, has been completely undermined" and said that peace is sought "through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s own dominion."
But in this regard, he quoted at length an insight of St. Augustine:
Furthermore, as Saint Augustine notes, “there is no one who does not wish to have peace. For even those who make war desire nothing but victory; they desire, that is to say, to attain to peace with glory. For what else is victory than the conquest of those who resist us? And when this is done there is peace … for even those who intentionally interrupt the peace in which they are living have no hatred of peace, but only wish it changed into a peace that suits them better. They do not, therefore, wish to have no peace, but only the peace that they desire.”
He also spoke of the threat of AI making ever more sophisticated weapons.
Humanitarian law
Pope Leo insisted that compliance with international humanitarian law cannot "cannot depend on mere circumstances and military or strategic interests."
We cannot ignore that the destruction of hospitals, energy infrastructure, homes, and places essential to daily life constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law. The Holy See firmly reiterates its condemnation of any form of involvement of civilians in military operations. It likewise hopes that the international community will remember that the protection of the principle of the inviolability of human dignity and the sanctity of life always counts for more than any mere national interest.
Primary challenge
"Rediscovering the meaning of words is perhaps one of the primary challenges of our time," Pope Leo contended.
When words lose their connection to reality, and reality itself becomes debatable and ultimately incommunicable, we become like the two people to whom Saint Augustine refers, who are forced to stay together without either of them knowing the other’s language. He observes that, “Dumb animals, even those of different species, understand each other more easily than these two individuals. For even though they are both human beings, their common nature is no help to friendliness when they are prevented by diversity of language from conveying their sentiments to one another; so that a man would more readily converse with his dog than with a foreigner!”
In this context, "language is becoming more and more a weapon with which to deceive, or to strike and offend opponents," he said. "We need words once again to express distinct and clear realities unequivocally," saying that this is a challenge not just for international relations, but also in our own homes and on social media.
Leo pointed out the "paradox that this weakening of language is often invoked in the name of the freedom of expression itself."
However, on closer inspection, the opposite is true, for freedom of speech and expression is guaranteed precisely by the certainty of language and the fact that every term is anchored in the truth. It is painful to see how, especially in the West, the space for genuine freedom of expression is rapidly shrinking. At the same time, a new Orwellian-style language is developing which, in an attempt to be increasingly inclusive, ends up excluding those who do not conform to the ideologies that are fueling it.
In this context, the freedom of conscience is restricted. He noted in particular the plight of doctors and healthcare professionals who refuse to engage in practices such as abortion or euthanasia.
"Conscientious objection is not rebellion, but an act of fidelity to oneself," he said. "At this moment in history, freedom of conscience seems increasingly to be questioned by States, even those that claim to be based on democracy and human rights."
Religious freedom
The Holy Father gave ample consideration to religious freedom as "the first of all human rights, because it expresses the most fundamental reality of the person," noting that recent research shows "sixty-four percent of the world’s population suffers serious violations of this right."
In requesting that the religious freedom and worship of Christians be fully respected, the Holy See asks the same for all other religious communities.
The persecution of Christians specifically "remains one of the most widespread human rights crises today, affecting over 380 million believers worldwide."
Sadly, all of this demonstrates that religious freedom is considered in many contexts more as a “privilege” or concession than a fundamental human right.
In this regard he mentioned Bangladesh, the Sahel region and Nigeria, as well as those of the serious terrorist attack last June on the parish of Saint Elias in Damascus, and Cabo Delgado, Mozambique.
Regarding Europe and the Americas, he said:
At the same time, we must not forget a subtle form of religious discrimination against Christians, which is spreading even in countries where they are in the majority, such as in Europe or the Americas. There, they are sometimes restricted in their ability to proclaim the truths of the Gospel for political or ideological reasons, especially when they defend the dignity of the weakest, the unborn, refugees and migrants, or promote the family.
Dignity of every person, including migrants
"In its international relations and actions, the Holy See consistently takes a stand in defense of the inalienable dignity of every person," the Pope said.
He insisted in this regard that "every migrant is a person and, as such, has inalienable rights that must be respected in every situation."
I renew the Holy See’s hope that the actions taken by States against criminality and human trafficking will not become a pretext for undermining the dignity of migrants and refugees.
He spoke of challenges to the family, saying it suffers two challenges: its marginalization within international systems, and the problem of fragile and broken families.
The vocation to love and to life, which manifests itself in an important way in the exclusive and indissoluble union between a woman and a man, implies a fundamental ethical imperative for enabling families to welcome and fully care for unborn life. This is increasingly a priority, especially in those countries that are experiencing a dramatic decline in birth rates. Life, in fact, is a priceless gift that develops within a committed relationship based on mutual self-giving and service.
Human rights short circuited
The Pope spoke out against abortion, surrogacy, euthanasia, and the growing scourge of addictions.
"The aforementioned considerations lead me to believe that, in the current context, we are seeing an actual 'short circuit' of human rights," he said.
The right to freedom of expression, freedom of conscience, religious freedom and even the right to life are being restricted in the name of other so-called new rights, with the result that the very framework of human rights is losing its vitality and creating space for force and oppression. This occurs when each right becomes self-referential, and especially when it becomes disconnected from reality, nature and truth.
Hope
"Notwithstanding the tragic situation before our eyes, peace remains a difficult yet realistic good," the Pope said.
"If we look more closely, there is no shortage of signs of courageous hope in our time," Leo insisted.
And he concluded by calling on the example of Francis of Assisi.
This coming October will mark the eighth century of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, a man of peace and dialogue, universally recognized even by those who do not belong to the Catholic Church. His life shines brightly, for it was inspired by the courage to live in truth, and the knowledge that a peaceful world is built starting with humble hearts turned towards the heavenly city.
A humble and peace-loving heart is what I wish for each of us and for all who dwell in our countries at the beginning of this New Year.
The full speech in English can be read here.
Correction: The article originally said 185 nations currently have diplomatic relations with the Holy See. The number is actually 184.
