Pope Leo XIV (C) gestures next to the speaker of the lower house, Francina Armengol (C-L), before delivering a speech at the Spanish lower house in Madrid, Spain, on Monday. Photo by Ciro FuscoEPA
June 8 (UPI) -- Pope Leo XIV said every war represents a "painful defeat" in negotiations Monday in the first time a pontiff has addressed the Cortes Generales, Spain's parliament.
He said that while weapons can cause momentary silence, they can never bring true and lasting peace to humanity.
"Every war constitutes, ultimately, a painful defeat of the capacity to negotiate and also of that shared conscience of humanity that recognizes bonds of justice between nations," Pope Leo said.
"The world is going through a profound spiritual and cultural crisis, which manifests itself in multiple forms of violence, polarization and mutual distrust. In this context, peace presents itself as a political aspiration and, even more so, as a true moral imperative."
