The Pope in the Principality: 'wars are the fruit of money and power'

"The wars that bloody our present are the fruit of the idolatry of power and money," says Pope Leo XIV in the mass at the Louis II stadium in the Principality of Monaco, the final stage of his lightning trip, the first in 2026. Wars (from Monte Carlo they are a long way off) and money (very close, the bank towers can be seen in the background): the Pope encapsulates in this passage his pastoral message for a visit that has aroused not a few perplexities. An unexpected trip, "strange" as it has been defined: certainly the first visit to Europe - after the trip at the turn of November and December to Turkey and Lebanon - did not take place in a large country, perhaps among those avoided by Francis, for example Spain, where he plans to go in June (he will soon be in Africa, for the very long 11-day tour), and where he will also visit the Canary Islands, land of migrations.

But still the message came through: 'Every broken life is a wound to the body of Christ. Let us not get used to the din of weapons, to images of war! Peace is not a mere balancing of forces, it is the work of purified hearts, of those who see in the other a brother to be guarded, not an enemy to be put down". The Pope's appeal is "to begin with the smallest and most oppressed: even today, how many calculations are made in the world to kill innocents; how many fake reasons are claimed to get them out of the way!". Leo made his first trip to Europe in the principality, a choice that raised a few questions about the reasons for travelling to the cradle of wealth (Monaco's per capita income is the highest in the world) in these times of war, apart from the fact that Monaco is one of the very few states in the world that recognises the Catholic religion as the state religion. Accompanying Prevost at his side was Prince Albert of Monaco and his consort Charlene (dressed in white, a historical privilege for Catholic sovereigns).

The pope's agenda is thickening: in addition to the trips to Africa and Spain (but no United States in 2026), Leo will soon release Rerum digitalium (provisional name), an encyclical on artificial intelligence, which will be ideally linked to Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum, from which he has clearly said he was inspired from the very first moment. But there are many topics on the table, starting with the messages for peace and possible reserved diplomatic initiatives. This is the context in which the trip to the Principality is grafted, a foreign policy signal above all to Europe, which must take the initiative to play a more active role in the Middle East quadrants, but also in Ukraine, always in a key of negotiation and not support for war actions.

"Overlooking the Mediterranean and nestled among the founding countries of European unity, your land has in its independence a vocation for encounter and social friendship, today threatened by a widespread climate of closure and self-sufficiency. The gift of littleness and a living spiritual inheritance commit your wealth to the service of law and justice, especially at a time in history when the ostentation of force and the logic of prevarication damage the world and compromise peace,' said Pope Leo in Monte Carlo. And he adds, speaking to the crowd, again in French: "Every talent, every opportunity, every good placed in our hands has a universal destination, an intrinsic need not to be withheld, but redistributed, so that the life of all may be better. This is why Jesus taught us to pray: 'Give us this day our daily bread'. This logic of freedom and sharing is at the basis of the parable of the Last Judgement, which has the poor at the centre: Christ the judge, who sits on the throne, identifies himself with each one of them".