By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — While nations have a right to defend themselves and a responsibility to protect their citizens, “no war is worth the loss of the life of even one human person, a sacred being created in the image and likeness of the Creator,” said a papal message to […]
Commentary: A Christian’s offer
The Jerusalem cardinal’s heroic inspiration in these dark, chaotic days By Editorial Board of Our Sunday Visitor Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa’s recent offer to exchange himself for the children held hostage in the Gaza Strip by Hamas is a testament to his extraordinary leadership and unwavering commitment to peace. This selfless act of courage has showcased […]
For Pope Francis, there is no such thing as a ‘just war’
By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — U.S. President Joe Biden minced no words calling Russian President Vladimir Putin a “butcher” who should no longer be in power. No matter how much one reporter pressed Pope Francis on the plane to Rome from Malta, asking, “What would be your message to Putin?” “What […]
War is like ‘a cancer that grows,’ says Vatican secretary of state
By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Russia’s war on Ukraine “seems to have changed” the world, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state. Since the invasion Feb. 24, the bombings and battles have sent millions of refugees fleeing, led several countries to consider increasing military spending and raised the specter of […]
WAR IN UKRAINE: ‘With a heart broken,’ pope prays for peace
One who wages war, Francis said, ‘relies on the diabolical and perverse logic of weapons, which is the furthest thing from God’s will’ By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said his heart was “broken” by the war in Ukraine, and he pleaded again, “Silence the weapons!” “Many times, we prayed […]
What was, what could be: War money spent elsewhere
By Mark Pattison Catholic News Service WASHINGTON — Some people consider the $3.5 trillion infrastructure proposal being proposed by congressional Democrats a huge chunk of change. But it pales compared to various estimates of military spending against a global war on terror spurred on by the 9/11 attacks of 2001. The “Costs of War Research […]
Iraqi cardinal: Innocents will ‘be the fuel’ for war
By Dale Gavlak Catholic News Service Chaldean Catholic Patriarch Louis Sako, responding to a U.S. drone attack in Baghdad that killed Iran’s top general, said “wisdom is required to avoid the ‘volcanic eruption’ we are about to face.” Speaking during the Epiphany Mass in Baghdad Jan. 6, he said the current crisis resulted from the […]