however legitimate the latter may be. In wars and conflicts there are
individual
persons, our brothers and sisters, men and women, young and old, boys and girls
who weep, suffer and die. Human beings who are easily discarded when our
response is simply to draw up lists of problems, strategies and disagreements.
"As I wrote in my letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on 9
August 2014, 'the most basic understanding of human dignity compels the
international community, particularly through the norms and mechanisms of
international law, to do all that it can to stop and to prevent further
systematic violence against ethnic and religious minorities' and to protect
innocent peoples.
"Along the same lines I would mention another kind of conflict which is not
always so open, yet is silently killing millions of people. Another kind of war
experienced by many of our societies as a result of the narcotics trade. A war
which is taken for granted and poorly fought. Drug trafficking is by its very
nature accompanied by trafficking in persons, money laundering, the arms trade,
child exploitation and other forms of corruption. A corruption which has
penetrated to different levels of social, political, military, artistic and
religious life, and, in many cases, has given rise to a parallel structure
which
threatens the credibility of our institutions.
"I began this speech recalling the visits of my predecessors. I would hope
that
my words will be taken above all as a continuation of the final words of the
address of Pope Paul VI; although spoken almost exactly fifty years ago, they
remain ever timely. I quote: 'The hour has come when a pause, a moment of
recollection, reflection, even of prayer, is absolutely needed so that we may
think back over our common origin, our history, our common destiny. The appeal
to the moral conscience of man has never been as necessary as it is today. For
the danger comes neither from progress nor from science; if these are used
well,
they can help to solve a great number of the serious problems besetting
mankind.
Among other things, human genius, well applied, will surely help to meet the
grave challenges of ecological deterioration and of exclusion. As Paul VI said:
'The real danger comes from man, who has at his disposal ever more powerful
instruments that are as well fitted to bring about ruin as they are to achieve
lofty conquests'.
"The common home of all men and women must continue to rise on the foundations
of a right understanding of universal fraternity and respect for the sacredness
of every human life, of every man and every woman, the poor, the elderly,
children, the infirm, the unborn, the unemployed, the abandoned, those
considered disposable because they are only considered as part of a statistic.
This common home of all men and women must also be built on the understanding
of
a certain sacredness of created nature.
"Such understanding and respect call for a higher degree of wisdom, one which
accepts transcendence, self-transcendence, rejects the creation of an
all-powerful elite, and recognises that the full meaning of individual and
collective life is found in selfless service to others and in the sage and
respectful use of creation for the common good. To repeat the words of Paul VI,
'the edifice of modern civilisation has to be built on spiritual principles,
for
they are the only ones capable not only of supporting it, but of shedding light
on it'.
"El Gaucho Martin Fierro, a classic of literature in my native land, says:
'Brothers should stand by each other, because this is the first law; keep a
true
bond between you always, at every time - because if you fight among yourselves,
you'll be devoured by those outside'. The contemporary world, so apparently
connected, is experiencing a growing and steady social fragmentation, which
places at risk 'the foundations of social life' and consequently leads to
'battles over conflicting interests'.
"The present time invites us to give priority to actions which generate new
processes in society, so as to bear fruit in significant and positive
historical
events. We cannot permit ourselves to postpone 'certain agendas' for the
future.
The future demands of us critical and global decisions in the face of
world-wide
conflicts which increase the number of the excluded and those in need.
"The praiseworthy international juridical framework of the United Nations
Organisation and of all its activities, like any other human endeavour, can be
improved, yet it remains necessary; at the same time it can be the pledge of a
secure and happy future for future generations. And so it will, if the
representatives of the States can set aside partisan and ideological interests,
and sincerely strive to serve the common good. I pray to Almighty God that this
will be the case, and I assure you of my support and my prayers, and the
support
and prayers of all the faithful of the Catholic Church, that this Institution,
all its member States, and each of its officials, will always render an
effective service to mankind, a service respectful of diversity and capable of
bringing out, for sake of the common good, the best in each people and in every
individual. God bless you all".
___________________________________________________________
Memorial at Ground Zero: life will always triumph over the prophets of
destruction
Vatican City, 26 September 2015 (VIS) - The Memorial at Ground Zero, built at
the site where on 11 September 2001 the Twin Towers collapsed after being
struck
by two aircraft in a terrorist attack that caused 2,896 deaths, was the second
stop of the Pope's visit to New York. The Memorial is now a park of almost
33,000 square metres with a grove of white oak trees and two artificial
waterfalls that flow into two large pools where the Twin Towers were previously
located. These are surrounded by a low bronze wall on which there are engraved
the names of all the victims of the attacks on the World Trade Centre on 26
February 1993 and 11 September 2001. Below ground, where the foundations of the
Twin Towers lay, there is a museum commemorating the tragic events.
Upon arrival Francis, accompanied by Cardinal Timothy Michael Dolan,
archbishop
of New York, left a flower near the waterfall and at the Memorial building
where
he was awaited by a rabbi and an imam of New York. He said a prayer for peace,
which was followed by five meditations on peace (Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh,
Christian and Muslim) and a Jewish prayer for the deceased, after which the
Pope
pronounced a discourse.
"I feel many different emotions standing here at Ground Zero, where thousands
of lives were taken in a senseless act of destruction. Here grief is palpable.
The water we see flowing towards that empty pit reminds us of all those lives
which fell prey to those who think that destruction, tearing down, is the only
way to settle conflicts. It is the silent cry of those who were victims of a
mindset which knows only violence, hatred and revenge. A mindset which can only
cause pain, suffering, destruction and tears. The flowing water is also a
symbol
of our tears. Tears at so much devastation and ruin, past and present. This is
a
place where we shed tears, we weep out of a sense of helplessness in the face
of
injustice, murder, and the failure to settle conflicts through dialogue. Here
we
mourn the wrongful and senseless loss of innocent lives because of the
inability
to find solutions which respect the common good. This flowing water reminds us
of yesterday's tears, but also of all the tears still being shed today".
He also recalled his meeting with some of the families of the fallen first
responders, and emphasised that this "made me see once again how acts of
destruction are never impersonal, abstract or merely material. They always have
a face, a concrete story, names. In those family members, we see the face of
pain, a pain which still touches us and cries out to heaven". However, he
added,
"those family members showed me the other face of this attack, the other face
of
their grief: the power of love and remembrance. A remembrance that does not
leave us empty and withdrawn. The name of so many loved ones are written around
the towers' footprints. We can see them, we can touch them, and we can never
forget them".
Remembering the firefighters who, on 11 September entered the crumbling towers
shortly before they fell, without considering the risk to their own lives, he
spoke about "the palpable sense of the heroic goodness which people are capable
of, those hidden reserves of strength from which we can draw". He added, "This
place of death became a place of life too, a place of saved lives, a hymn to
the
triumph of life over the prophets of destruction and death, to goodness over
evil, to reconciliation and unity over hatred and division".
"It is a source of great hope that in this place of sorrow and remembrance I
can join with leaders representing the many religious traditions which enrich
the life of this great city. I trust that our presence together will be a
powerful sign of our shared desire to be a force for reconciliation, peace and
justice in this community and throughout the world. For all our differences and
disagreements, we can live in a world of peace. In opposing every attempt to
create a rigid uniformity, we can and must build unity on the basis of our
diversity of languages, cultures and religions, and lift our voices against
everything which would stand in the way of such unity. Together we are called
to
say 'no' to every attempt to impose uniformity and 'yes' to a diversity
accepted
and reconciled".
Francis invited all those present to pray in silence for peace: "Peace in our
homes, our families, our schools and our communities. Peace in all those places
where war never seems to end. Peace for those faces which have known nothing
but
pain".
"In this way", he concluded, "the lives of our dear ones will not be lives
which will one day be forgotten. Instead, they will be present whenever we
strive to be prophets not of tearing down but of building up, prophets of
reconciliation, prophets of peace".
___________________________________________________________
Meeting with the children and families of immigrants in Harlem
Vatican City,26 September 2015 (VIS) - The School of Our Lady Queen of Angels
in Harlem has 282 pupils aged from 5 to 14, of whom 69 per cent study as a
result of a scholarship. The children are from low income families, so-called
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