Young Catholics take part in the Lednica 2000 meeting in Poland on June 4, 2022. / Courtesy of the Lednica2000 Facebook page.
Warsaw, Poland, Jun 6, 2022 / 11:05 am (CNA).
Twenty-two thousand young people from Poland and Ukraine attended the 26… […]
Santa Maria di Collemaggio in L’Aquila, Italy, pictured in 2020. / RenanGreca via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Rome Newsroom, Jun 6, 2022 / 10:07 am (CNA).
On Saturday, June 4, the Holy See press office announced that Pope Francis will visit the I… […]
The beatification of Father Leonard Melki and Father Thomas Saleh in Jal el Dib, Lebanon, on June 4, 2022. / Guitta Maroun/ACI MENA.
Rome Newsroom, Jun 6, 2022 / 09:40 am (CNA).
Two Catholic priests martyred under the Ottoman Empire were beatif… […]
An ordinary public consistory at the Vatican on Oct. 20, 2014. / Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk.
Vatican City, Jun 6, 2022 / 04:46 am (CNA).
Under the Code of Canon Law, reformed in 1983, there are two types of consistories of cardinals: ordinary an… […]
Cross of the Martyrs. / Aaron Groote via Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0).
Rome Newsroom, Jun 6, 2022 / 04:08 am (CNA).
More political and religious leaders around the world should be speaking out about the attack on a Catholic church in Nigeria that r… […]
The Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter (1907-1943) was executed by the occupying Nazi regime for his refusal to serve in the armed forces of the Third Reich. His conscientious objection was based on his deep Catholic […]
Joel Osteen preaches at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, during the 8:30 a.m. Sunday service on June 5, 2022. Pro-abortion activists disrupted the 11 a.m. service later the same day. / Screenshot from Lakewood Church YouTube video
Washington,… […]
The flag of Nigeria on a military uniform. / Bumble Dee/Shutterstock.
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 5, 2022 / 12:22 pm (CNA).
The Vatican and a local Catholic bishop responded on Sunday to an attack on a church in Nigeria in which at least 50 … […]
Breaking News / CNA
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 5, 2022 / 09:13 am (CNA).
Gunmen have killed multiple worshipers Sunday at a Catholic Church in southwestern Nigeria, according to state officials.Dozens of people, including children, are beli… […]
Relatives, friends and comrades of Ukrainian soldier Eduardo Trepilchenko, who was killed on the Eastern front battling the Russian invasion , attend his funeral at St Michael’s Cathedral on May 25, 2022 in Kyiv, Ukraine. / Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 5, 2022 / 07:04 am (CNA).
Pope Francis condemned the war in Ukraine after Russia’s ongoing invasion of that country reached the 100-day mark.
“On Pentecost, God’s dream for humanity becomes reality; fifty days after Easter, peoples who speak different languages encounter and understand one another,” the 85-year-old pontiff said. “But now, 100 days after the beginning of the armed aggression against Ukraine, the nightmare of war, which is the negation of God’s dream, has once again befallen humanity.”
He spoke to the crowd in St. Peter’s Square in Rome following the Regina Coeli, a Marian prayer said during the Easter season, on June 5. Thousands of faithful gathered on the feast of Pentecost with colorful banners and flags to pray with the pontiff on the hot, summer-like day.
Every year, the feast of Pentecost marks the end of Easter and recalls when the Holy Spirit comes upon the apostles, Mary, and the first followers of Christ.
Before the Regina Coeli, Pope Francis asked the joyful crowd — young, elderly, religious, and families from around the world — to repeat the prayer: “Come Holy Spirit, remind me of Jesus, enlighten my heart.”
During his address, he urged world leaders to unite against war and work toward solutions.
“And while the fury of destruction and death rampages and the conflicts rage on, fuelling an escalation that is increasingly dangerous for all, I renew my appeal to the leaders of Nations: do not lead humanity into ruin, please!” he pleaded. “Let true negotiations take place, real talks for a ceasefire and for a sustainable solution.”
He added, “Let the desperate cry of the suffering people be heard — we see this every day in the media — have respect for human life and stop the macabre destruction of cities and villages in the east of Ukraine.”
June 3 marked 100 days since the beginning of Russia’s invasion that has left thousands dead. The United Nations estimates that nearly 7 million people have fled Ukraine following Russia’s invasion, with many more displaced or stranded within Ukraine.
Pope Francis, an outspoken advocate for the Ukrainian people, has expressed a desire to meet with Vladimir Putin in Moscow and to travel to Ukraine when the “right time” comes.
His comments come after he consecrated Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in March. At the end of May, he prayed the rosary for peace in Ukraine and around the world.
On Sunday, the pontiff encouraged, “Let us continue, please, to pray and to strive tirelessly for peace.” You can watch the pope’s full address in the video below.
At the end of his address, Pope Francis also recognized the recent beatification of two Lebanese priests martyred under the Ottoman Empire: Leonardo Melki and Thomas George Saleh.
Pope Francis also thanked God for a recently renewed truce between the Government in Yemen and Houthi rebels in the Yemen conflict.
He prayed for the victims of the landslides caused by torrential rains in the metropolitan region of Recife, Brazil, that have left more than 100 dead. He also expressed his closeness to fishermen suffering from increased gas prices and to all workers affected by the conflict in Ukraine.
He concluded with one last request: “I pray for you; pray for me.”
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