BY Daniel Harkins | September 2 | comments icon 0 COMMENTS     print icon print

Soldier escorts schoolchildren from Army Public School attacked by Taliban gunmen in Pakistan

Pope decries war, persecution and weapons bathed in blood of the innocent

Speaking at the end of his general audience, the Holy Father said 'war never again' is the desire of victims of conflict

War never again, Pope Francis said this morning as he railed against conflict, persecution of Christians, and the trafficking of weapons ‘bathed in the blood of so many innocent people.’

Speaking at the end of his general audience to pilgrims in St Peter’s Square, the Pope said that ‘war never again’ is the permanent desire of those who are victims of conflicts and the anguished cry from the hearts of all men and women of good will to the Prince of Prince.

‘War never again’ is a phrase the Pope has used before, and was used by Pope Paul VI in an address to the United Nations in 1965.

Earlier, the Holy Father had continued his catechesis on the family calling on families to combat the ‘desertification’ of modern cities.

“There’s so much entertainment,” Pope Francis said. “So many things to waste time and laugh about. But love is missing. The answer is the family. It’s the family, with a father and mother who work and take care of the kids. The smile of a family has the strength to overcome the desertification of our cities. This is the victory of love and of the family.

“Where we see affection within a family, actions of love emerge and these speak louder than words. They are actions of love. This is something to think about.”

At the end of the audience, the Pope blessed newlywed couples, and he met with a number of clergy, including Cardinal Raymond Burke, the traditionalist American linked in the past to opposition against some of the Pope’s statements.

The general audience catechises on the family will continue in the coming weeks ahead of October’s Synod on the Family.

 

[email protected]

Leave a Reply

latest news

Church support for atheist schools where there is demand

December 29th, 2015 | comments icon 0 COMMENTS

Peter Kearney, director of the Catholic Media Office, calls for...


New bishop for Argyll and the Isles

December 28th, 2015 | comments icon 0 COMMENTS

Pope Francis has today appointed Mgr Brian McGee as the...


Pope Angelus on feast of St Stephen

December 26th, 2015 | comments icon 0 COMMENTS

Unoffical full text translation: Forgive like St Stephen...


Pope Francis’ Christmas day Urbi et Orbi message

December 25th, 2015 | comments icon 0 COMMENTS

Speaking from the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica, the...




Social media

Latest edition

P1-DEC-25-2015

exclusively in the paper

Don’t miss next Friday’s double edition of the SCO for Christmas and New Year, priced, £2. Inside:

  • Christmas messages from the dioceses around Scotland.
  • 2015 Year in Review special eight-page pullout section, inside the double Christmas edition.
  • James Barclay’s 2015 Christmas short story Gramps.
  • Nativity plays and Christmas shows photograph special.

Previous editions

Previous editions of the Scottish Catholic Observer newspaper are only available to subscribed Members. To download previous editions of the paper, please subscribe.

note: registered members only.

Read the SCO