Pope urges Ukrainian youth to forgive enemies for sake of peace
Pravda Ukraine
Pope Francis has called on Ukrainian youth to forgive and resist the urge to “respond to a punch with another punch” despite the challenges of war.
Source: Pope Francis during a video conference with Ukrainian youth, Vatican News reports
Details: During the event, the pontiff read a prayer and answered questions from Ukrainians living in Ukraine and abroad.
Iliana Dobra, a 21-year-old teacher from Uzhhorod, was the first to address the head of the Catholic Church. The woman asked Pope Francis about his opinion on whether it is worth dying for one’s homeland and how to maintain faith in the defence of life in times of war.
The pontiff replied that “the remedy is dialogue”, through which peace is built.
Quote: “Life today is devalued. Money and war positions are given more importance than human life itself.
War always destroys. The remedy is dialogue: always, among ourselves, even with those who oppose us. Please, never grow tired of dialogue. Peace is built through dialogue. It is true that sometimes dialogue is impossible due to the stubbornness of some, but we must always make the effort,” the Pope explained.
Another Ukrainian woman, 27-year-old Yuliia, asked how peace could be seen if “there is genocide against our people”. The head of the Catholic Church did not answer this question but condemned the consequences of war, mentioning the conflict between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Quote: “War brings famine. Every evening, I call the parish in Gaza, and they tell me they often go hungry. War not only causes famine – it kills,” Pope Francis added.
Tetiana, 35, from Chicago, noted that Ukrainian children were forced to flee from the “Herods of today” and asked how to forgive and teach forgiveness to future generations.
Quote: “But I am helped by this thought: I must forgive as I have been forgiven. Each of us must recall how we have been forgiven. The art of forgiveness is not easy, but we must keep moving forward and always forgive,” the Pope replied.
Part of the online meeting was held from the Cathedral of the Resurrection in Kyiv. Before it, Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk said that those present would have to take shelter if an air-raid warning was issued.
He also called on Ukrainian youth to be patriotic, to love their homeland and to remember those who died defending the country.
Background: The Pope called on adults to fight bullying in educational institutions, saying that bullying “prepares students for war, not peace”.
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