PANAJI
Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) President Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão has invited all faithful, and all people of goodwill across Asia, to join in prayer and in action, for a world where conflicts are resolved not by weapons, but by wisdom; not by fear, but by trust.
Cardinal Ferrão along with FABC Vice President Cardinal Pablo Virgilio S. David and FABC Secretary General Cardinal Isao Kikuchi, SVD on Wednesday issued a joint pastoral appeal for peace, justice, and moral responsibility to all people of goodwill, and to those entrusted with responsibility among the nations.
“In these days of deepening global anxiety and escalating violence, we leaders of the FABC, wish to express our prayerful solidarity with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, and to echo his urgent appeal for peace,” stated the appeal.
The appeal claimed that the Beatitude “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God” is not a pious ideal, but it is a moral imperative.
“In a time when the fragility of international law and the weakening of global institutions are becoming increasingly evident, the temptation is strong to fall back on the logic of power”on force, deterrence, and domination. Yet the Gospel calls us to a different path: the path of justice, dialogue, and peace rooted in human dignity.”
“We have heard with clarity the voice of Pope Leo, who reminds the world that violence can never be the foundation of a just and lasting peace, and that invoking God to justify war is a distortion of faith. His words are not those of political partisanship, but of moral and spiritual leadership, exercised in fidelity to the Gospel.”
Cardinal Ferrão stated that Asia knows well the cost of war, the wounds of division, and the long journey toward reconciliation.
“From our own histories, we have learned that peace is never achieved through domination, but through patient dialogue, mutual respect, and the difficult work of justice,” he stated.
“As a Church that is called to be a sign and instrument of unity for the whole human race, we believe that we cannot remain silent. Our mission is not to wield power, but to form consciences, to speak truth, and to keep alive the hope that peace is possible.”
“We invite all the faithful, and all people of goodwill, to join us in prayer and in action”for a world where conflicts are resolved not by weapons, but by wisdom; not by fear, but by trust.”
The three cardinals prayed that the Lord Jesus would guide the nations away from the paths of destruction and toward the ways of reconciliation.
