Pope Leo XIV (C) gestures next to the speaker of the lower house, Francina Armengol (C-L), before delivering a speech at the Spanish lower house in Madrid, Spain, on Monday. Photo by Ciro FuscoEPA
Pope Leo XIV said every war represents a “painful defeat” in negotiations Monday in the first time a pontiff has addressed the Cortes Generales, Spain’s parliament.
He said that while weapons can cause momentary silence, they can never bring true and lasting peace to humanity.
“Every war constitutes, ultimately, a painful defeat of the capacity to negotiate and also of that shared conscience of humanity that recognizes bonds of justice between nations,” Pope Leo said.
“The world is going through a profound spiritual and cultural crisis, which manifests itself in multiple forms of violence, polarization and mutual distrust. In this context, peace presents itself as a political aspiration and, even more so, as a true moral imperative.”
The pope also said that the “tragic drama of migration” deserves a response that puts humanity at the center, addresses the root causes that force them to leave their homes and extends beyond merely managing the influx of migrants.
Pope Leo’s speech, the first by a pontiff before the Spanish parliament, came one day after he held an open-air mass to celebrate the feast of Corpus Christi in Madrid before an estimated 1.2 million people. It was the first visit by a pontiff to Spain in 15 years.
During the sermon, he said that, like God, people should work to help “the poor, the downtrodden, those who are alone and forsaken,” adding that religion remains “a school of faith from which” they can draw in their daily lives.
Historic June moments through the years
Troops in landing craft approach Omaha Beach on D-Day in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. D-Day was the largest seaborne invasion in history and turned the tide of World War II. Photo by UPI | License Photo
