At the end of his weekly catechesis, Pope Francis was visibly moved as he spoke out against the war in Ukraine.
POPE FRANCIS
I would like to take a minute to remember the victims of war.
He said that every war is a loss for humanity that ends without any winners.
POPE FRANCIS
May the Lord send his spirit to make us understand that war is a defeat for humanity. We need to defeat the need to make wars which destroy us, and get rid of this need for self-destruction.
The Pope also asked for prayers to stop the sale of weapons. He said that the solution to conflict is not waging war, but to make weapons into instruments for peace, as the Bible says.
Minutes after the audience, the Vatican released the prayer Pope Francis will offer for the consecration of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in which he asks for God for the miracle of bringing the ongoing war to a peaceful end.
JRB
TR: JM