Pope Francis warned yesterday of the risk of “self-destruction” of humanity by what he calls the “Third World War in pieces”, including the conflict over the “tormented Ukraine”. The pontiff lamented “a race towards rearmament that seems unstoppable and that runs the risk of leading us to self-destruction”, writing the preface to the book “A long road to Lisbon”, by journalist Aura Miguel, released yesterday.
“The war that has been waged against the tormented Ukraine, a bloody war in the heart of Christian Europe, is just one of many pieces of the Third World War that unfortunately began years ago,” denounced the pontiff in the introductory letter to the work dedicated to the next World Youth Day that will be held in Lisbon at the beginning of August. “So many wars continue to be forgotten, so many conflicts, so much unspeakable violence continues to be perpetrated,” Francis criticized, after referring to the conflict that began in February 2022 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“We care, we are interested in the fate of millions of people, of so many children, who have no water, food, or medical attention, while the rulers seem to compete to see who spends more on sophisticated weapons,” the Pope said in that context. .
Among his concerns, the pontiff also included “those who suffer in the silence of our cities and need to be welcomed and listened to”, in addition to the “destiny of the planet on which we live and which we are called to guard in order to hand it over to those who will come after we”. “We are interested in and care about everything, including the digital environment in which we are immersed and that we are called to change to make it more and more human,” he added. In his preface, Francisco analyzed the situation of world youth and considered that “the so-called digital natives, the kids of our time, run the daily risk of isolating themselves, of living in a virtual environment for a large part of their existence, falling prey to a aggressive market that induces false needs”.
“With the Covid pandemic and the experience of confinement, these risks have increased even more,” the pontiff analyzed, before stating that “leaving home, going out with travel companions, living strong listening and prayer experiences, combined with moments of celebration, and doing it together, makes these moments precious for the life of each one”.
“Youth is a dream, it is openness to reality, it is the discovery of what is really worthwhile in life, it is the struggle to conquer it, it is opening up to intense and true relationships, it is commitment to others and for others,” he added. then.
