The main theme concerns war but Pope Francis also spoke of human fragility and the importance of words: these are the macro areas that the pontiff addressed in a letter sent to the director of Corriere della Sera during his hospitalization at the Policlinico Gemelli that was published in the last few hours.
"Fragility makes us clearer"
"Dear Director, I would like to thank you for the words of closeness with which you intended to make yourself present in this moment of illness in which, as I have had the opportunity to say, war appears even more absurd", writes Bergoglio who has repeatedly in recent weeks recalled the effect of the wars of the world "seen" and "experienced" from his room on the tenth floor of the hospital that he has always and firmly condemned. From here he spoke about the theme of human fragility that has the power to "make us more lucid concerning what lasts and what passes, what makes us live and what kills. Perhaps this is why we so often tend to deny limits and avoid fragile and wounded people: they have the power to question the direction we have chosen, as individuals and as communities.
"Disarming the Earth"
Pope Francis then addressed all information and communication professionals, underlining the importance of words and the effect they can have on us and among us. "I would like to encourage you and all those who dedicate work and intelligence to informing, through communication tools that now unite our world in real-time: feel the full importance of words. They are never just words: they are facts that build human environments", writes the Pope. "They can connect or divide, serve the truth, or make use of it. We must disarm words, disarm minds and disarm the Earth. There is a great need for reflection, for calm, for a sense of complexity".
A collective effort
For the right things to happen for all peoples and nations, however, we need to roll up our sleeves, as Pope Francis clearly says. "While war does nothing but devastate communities and the environment, without offering solutions to conflicts, diplomacy and international organizations need new life and credibility. Religions, moreover, can draw on the spirituality of people to rekindle the desire for brotherhood and justice, the hope of peace. All this requires commitment, work, silence, and words. Let us feel united in this effort, which heavenly Grace will not cease to inspire and accompany".