Vatican, Pope to Cortes: 'Weapons do not build lasting peace'
Leone in speech to Spanish Parliament, ten minutes of applause
From the protection of human life to the strong concern for the global arms race, passing through the centrality of the family and the dignity of migrants. These were the cornerstones of the speech delivered by Pope Leo XIV in front of the Spanish Parliament, where for the first time in history a Pontiff spoke. At the end of the speech the parliamentarians - Premier Sanchez was present - applauded for over ten minutes.
"Worrying that rearmament is presented as inevitable!"
"Every war constitutes a painful defeat of the ability to negotiate," Leone said, "weapons may impose a temporary silence, but they can never build a genuine and lasting peace. This is why it is worrying that, in various parts of the world and also in Europe, rearmament is once again being presented as an almost inevitable response to the fragility of the international scenario. True security, on the other hand, comes from justice, patient dialogue, and respect for international law'. Today, the international community is called upon 'to rediscover the indispensable value of dialogue as a patient path towards just and lasting agreements, based on respect for treaties, on the transparency of diplomatic action and on the sincere desire to put peace before recourse to force'. Only from this return to the field of diplomacy and law, the Pontiff added, "are trust and hope born", for the whole of humanity.
"Promoting a culture of reciprocity"
Leone - who arrived in Spain in the midst of a political crisis - added to the parliamentarians: 'Within societies themselves, it is urgent to promote a culture of reciprocity. Political pluralism should not degenerate into permanent discrediting of the opponent. In a mature coexistence, even conflict can become a passage towards peace, when differences are mitigated by listening and are oriented towards the recognition of the needs, aspirations and capacities of all'. Prevost called on those with public responsibilities to 'protect also through language'. "Words," said the Holy Father, "can open roads or close them, they can illuminate reality or distort it to the point of making encounter impossible. Those who exercise public responsibility have, therefore, a special obligation to guard the word in order to 'disarm language'. Firmness does not demand contempt, dissent does not entail humiliation'.
"Never treat man as a commodity"
"Modern freedom," Leo went on to say, "has also been prepared by a long education of conscience, deeply marked by the Christian tradition. In this inner school, people have learnt that law must serve the good, that justice sets limits to force, that power needs legitimacy, that the poor belong fully to the community, that the stranger must be welcomed according to his dignity, and that human life can never be treated as a commodity,' he said, adding that in the face of challenges such as the development brought about by artificial intelligence, he called for human dignity to come before utility.
"On migrants no nation can be left alone"
"The tragic migratory drama" must be tackled by going "beyond the simple management of flows," said the Pope speaking to the Spanish Parliament: there is "a twofold need for social justice: to offer safe and legal routes, a respectful welcome and real possibilities for integration, and to promote, at the same time, the right to remain in one's own land." The Pope then mentions "increasingly dangerous routes" such as the Atlantic one: "It is necessary to strengthen rescue and assistance, especially with multilateral cooperation" because "no nation can face a challenge of this magnitude alone".
