World Day of Peace

Pope Francis is issuing an invitation that has a natural consonance with biblical and ecclesial understanding of the Jubilee Year, and draws inspiration in particular from the Encyclical letters Laudato si’ and Fratelli tutti, especially around the concepts of hope and forgiveness, the heart of the Jubilee.

It is a call to true conversion, with an approach based on reconciliation rather than condemnation. In the spirit of the chosen theme “Forgive us our trespasses: grant us your peace” the message emphasizes on this personal, community and international conversion. It is on this basis that “true peace be able to flourish, not only in the cessation of conflicts but also in a new reality in which wounds are healed and each person’s dignity is recognized.”

This world day was instituted by Pope Paul VI on January 1, 1968, following an awareness campaign that gathered over three million signatures from young people in 125 countries. The petition was the brainchild of the founder of an organization that fights leprosy and poverty and promotes access to education.

Addressing his request to the UN Secretary General of the time, Raoul Follereau asked “that all nations present at the UN decide that each year, on the occasion of a World Day of Peace, they will take from their respective budgets what one day of armament costs them, and will put it in common to fight against famines, slums and the great endemics which decimate humanity (…)”. His message was echoed by Pope Paul VI during a visit to India on December 4, 1964.

You can read the Pope’s full message in English, Spanish and French.

Source: Pixabay