Pope Francis Urges Religious Leaders to Foster Peace
Concluding his French visit, Pope Francis invoked the post-World War II European integration efforts to call for dialogue and unity.
Pope Francis urged religious leaders on Monday to preach messages of peace and unity, recalling the dialogue that contributed to Europe’s post-World War II integration as he wrapped up a visit to France.
Francis traveled to the eastern city of Metz, near the border with Luxembourg and Germany, to preside over an interreligious meeting. The gathering was held at a conference center named for Robert Schuman, a French Catholic statesman considered one of the founding fathers of European unity.
The pontiff chose to conclude his four-day visit to France in Metz to emphasize his appeal for Europe to remember its tradition of dialogue in confronting contemporary challenges such as war, migration, and polarization.
Speaking to Jewish, Muslim, Protestant, and Orthodox leaders, Francis cited Schuman’s example of fostering dialogue among rivals. He stated that faith leaders share a responsibility to build friendships across borders in the name of peace. "Indeed, to invoke God’s name in order to justify violence or oppression is to profane that name," he said. "Religious discourse must constantly call for the disarmament of hearts and words."
The Pope’s visit to France, a secular nation with a historically Catholic population, has been characterized by his calls for Europe to draw upon its Christian heritage to address current ethical and geopolitical issues. On Sunday, at the Catholic shrine in Lourdes, he criticized legislation permitting medically assisted dying as "false compassion."
Francis's events in France drew large crowds, with an estimated 800,000 people attending his Mass in Paris's Place de la Concorde, exceeding organizers' expectations.
Earlier on Monday, Francis's flight from Lourdes to Metz was accompanied by two French fighter jets.
His final event in France was to be a Mass celebrated in Metz Cathedral of St. Stephen. The cathedral, known as "The Good Lord’s Lantern" for its stained-glass windows, some designed by the 20th-century Jewish artist Marc Chagall, is a significant example of French Gothic architecture.
Schuman, a resistance fighter imprisoned by the Nazis, is recognized for his 1950 Schuman Declaration. This proposal led to the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community, pooling the production of historical rivals France and Germany. The initiative was based on the belief that intertwined economic interests would make future wars between them "not merely unthinkable, but materially impossible."
The European Coal and Steel Community was the precursor to the institutions that eventually formed the European Union. Schuman was declared "venerable" in 2021, a step toward possible sainthood.