Pope Leo XIV on Jan. 31 addressed members of the “One Humanity, One Planet” conference — an international group of young political leaders working on proposals for political impact — and told them that the greatest threat to peace is the murder of unborn children.
“I am delighted to meet with you, young people from every part of the world, “ the Pope began, “united by a shared commitment to the pursuit of the common good through political engagement.”
He thanked the group for their commitment to peace.
“Peace, indeed, is above all a gift,” Pope Leo said. “We receive it from those who came before us, and for this we must be grateful. Peace is also a covenant, which binds us to one another and commits us to safeguard it where it exists and to pursue it where it is absent. Finally, peace is a promise, because it opens before us the hope of a better world, a hope shared by all people of good will.”
He urged the members of the conference to find ways to allow citizens to participate in their governments, which he said is the foundation of universal fraternity.
He added that peace is impossible while humanity wages war against itself by mistreating, ignoring, or discarding the weakest members of society.
He quoted Mother Teresa, who said at the National Prayer Breakfast in 1994 that “the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion.”
“Her words remain prophetic,” the Pope commented. “No policy can genuinely serve the people if it denies the unborn the gift of life, or if it neglects to support those in need, whether in their material circumstances or in their spiritual distress.”
He exhorted the group to take courage, and told them that God Himself created the earth to be a home for all people.
“Therefore, the title of your conference, ‘One Humanity, One Planet,’” he said, “finds its fullest expression when completed by the words ‘One God.’”
The Pope then gave the audience his apostolic blessing.