SW News: Pope Francis reiterated his opinion that every war leaves the world worse off than it was and said peace among men is a vital good for which we must labor passionately and fervently entreat God.

He was addressing members of the European Institute for International Studies, based in Salamanca, Spain, whose work in education in international relations aims to prepare leaders to make a difference in the building of a better world.
The Pope remarked in his reflection on the idea of peace that it is a struggle because peace is not merely based on balances of power or on ignoring the rightful aspirations of the less privileged but rather is an essential good for which we must labor vigorously and fervently entreat God.

"War is a shameful capitulation, a defeat in the face of the forces of evil, a failure of politics and humanity." And he bemoaned the fact that there had been so much war and artificial ruin during the previous 100 years. “That’s why the struggle for human understanding and peace must be tireless, we cannot afford to take holidays in this.”

The Holy Father said that, regrettably, the current predicament can only serve to emphasize the fact that every war results in a setback for humanity. The Pope stated that eliminating weapon production for a year would end global hunger, and he brought up the alarming notion that it looks that mankind has a hostile tendency towards destruction.

It's important to remember the human drama involved in the war: And we need to learn from this mistake and turn it into something positive. Through prayer and work, he said, we must try to generate solutions. “From the ashes we are seeing today something new can be born, in this failure, we can find a lesson for life,” he remarked. Last but not least, the Holy Father gave some encouraging words, noting that "what looks to be a failure and a cause for shame can, like the scandal of the Cross, transform into a victory."