Pope Leo XIV after the tragedy in Kyiv: The heart of the Church is torn by the cries from Ukraine
This was reported by the UGCC Department for Information.
“The heart of the Church is rent asunder by the cries rising from places of war, especially Ukraine, Iran, Israel, and Gaza,” said the pontiff, placing Ukraine at the top of the list of countries suffering from war.
Pope Leo XIV categorically warned against becoming accustomed to war: "We must never become accustomed to war! On the contrary, we must reject as a temptation the allure of powerful and sophisticated weapons."
The Holy Father particularly emphasized the horror of modern warfare: “Since modern warfare uses high-precision weapons, its cruelty threatens to lead combatants to a barbarism far greater than that of times past.”
The Pope's statement was issued a day after one of the deadliest Russian shelling attacks on the Ukrainian capital. On the morning of June 17, it was reported that a Russian missile struck a nine-story residential building in Kyiv, completely destroying an entire stairwell. Rescuers continued to clear the rubble for 24 hours, and the number of civilian casualties rose to 26, with over a hundred injured.
“Therefore, in the name of human dignity and international law, I repeat to those responsible what Pope Francis used to say: ‘War is always a defeat!’ And with Pius XII, ‘Nothing is lost with peace. Everything can be lost with war,’” the pontiff concluded.
