While Pope Francis calls for a deeper understanding of just war, and acknowledges the importance of self defense, he also insists that war is a "monster": It's "madness," a trick of the devil, and a tragedy in which it's the innocent who pay, very often children.
On his way home from Kazakhstan on September 15, 2002, he recalled an anecdote from his childhood, to reflect on those who have a heart for peace.
In sharing that personal memory, the Pope asked, "I wonder, I don't know if our hearts are educated well enough today to cry for joy when we see peace."
Now, he lamented, "everything has changed," and there's an attitude of "if you don't make war, you are not useful! Then there is the arms business. This is a store of assassins."
Tragic statistics
While acknowledging that he didn't have exact research, he shared:
And with that, he shared the story of another group who touched him:
