Pope Francis Message for the
World Day of Peace
January 1st 2014
"Fraternity,
the Foundation and Pathway to Peace"
1. Introduction
• In the heart of every person is a longing for
fraternity
• To see others not as enemies or rivals but
brothers and sisters
• Fraternity is essential, for we are relational
beings
• Without Fraternity it is impossible to build a just
society and lasting peace
• Fraternity is first learned in the family
• The family is the foundation and first pathway to
peace in the world
1. Introduction
• The call to Fraternity in the world is inhibited by
a "globalization of indifference"
• Many offences against human rights, especially
the right to life and freedom of religion
• Alongside armed conflicts are economic and
financial conflicts
• “Globalization makes us neighbors, but does not
make us brothers.” (Pope Benedict XVI Caritas
in Veritatae)
• There is a lack of both fraternity, and of a culture
of Solidarity
1. Introduction
– "New ideologies, characterized by rampant
individualism, egocentrism and materialistic
consumerism, weaken social bonds, fuelling that
"throw away" culture mentality which leads to
contempt for, and abandonment of, the weakest and
those considered "useless".
• Contemporary ethical systems cannot produce
genuine fraternity, which needs reference to a
common Father. True brotherhood among
peoples demands a transcendent Fatherhood.
2. God's Plan for Fraternity
• "Where is your brother?" Genesis 4:9
• To understand God's plan for Fraternity, it is
necessary to turn to Scripture.
• According to the Biblical account of Creation, all
people are descended from common parents,
Adam and Eve, thus all are bothers and sisters.
• Cain and Abel are called to a vocation as
brothers, but Cain kills Abel out of jealousy. Why
did Cain disregard the bonds of fraternity? Cain
gives in to evil and scorns God's plan. This
denial of fraternity is the root of wars and
injustice.
3. Can men and women in this world ever fully respond to
the longing for fraternity placed within them by God?
• Jesus says, "For you have only one Father, who is God,
and you are all brothers and sisters." (Mt 23:8-9) God's
love for each person generates fraternity, because it
transforms our lives and our relationships with others.
• Human fraternity is regenerated in the death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has made us a new
humanity, in full communion with the will of God.
• Jesus becomes the definitive and new principle of us all.
He himself is the New Covenant, in his person we are
reconciled with God and with each other as brothers and
sisters. Ephesians 2:14-16
• The reconciled person sees God as the Father of all, and
is spurred on to live a life of fraternity with all.
4. Fraternity, the Foundation and
Pathway to Peace
• The Social Encyclicals written by Pope Francis' predecessors are
very helpful in showing this.
• Pope Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, "The integral development of
peoples is the new definition of peace"
• Pope John Paul II, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, peace is an 'opus
solidaritas' a work of solidarity
• Paul VI stated that individuals and nations must encounter each
other in a spirit of fraternity. Three particular ways:
– The Duty of Solidarity - richer nations must help the less developed
– The Duty of Social Justice - greater fairness between stronger and
weaker peoples
– The Duty of Universal Charity - the promotion of a more humane world
for all, in which all have something to give and to receive
4. Fraternity, the Foundation and
Pathway to Peace
• Pope John Paul II taught that peace is 'opus solidaritatis'
- a work of solidarity
• Fraternity is the principle foundation of Solidarity
• Peace is an indivisible good: either it is the good of all or
it is the good of none.
• Solidarity is "a firm and persevering determination to
commit oneself to the common good"
• This means not being guided by a desire for profit or a
thirst for power.
• To serve other people rather than to exploit them
4. Fraternity, the Foundation and
Pathway to Peace
• Christian solidarity presumes that our
neighbor is loved not only as a bearer of
rights and equality, but as "the living image
of God the Father, redeemed by the blood
of Christ and placed under the permanent
action of the Holy Spirit ."
• This brings to our vision of the world a new
criterion for interpreting it and changing it.
5. Fraternity, a Prerequisite for
Fighting Poverty
• Pope Benedict XVI wrote in Caritas in
Veritatae that lack of fraternity is a
significant cause of poverty.
– Poverty of Relationships - lack of solid family
and community relationships
– Reduction in Absolute Poverty - to be
welcomed
– Serious rise in Relative Poverty - inequality
between people and groups
5. Fraternity, a Prerequisite for
Fighting Poverty
– "Effective policies are needed to promote the principle
of fraternity, securing for people - who are equal in
dignity and fundamental rights - access to capital,
services, educational resources, healthcare and
technology so that every person has the opportunity
to express and realize his or her life project and can
develop fully as a person."
• There is also a need for policies to lessen the
excessive imbalance between incomes.
• Another form of promoting fraternity is to share
one's own wealth with others.
6. The Rediscovery of Fraternity
in the Economy
• In 1979 Pope John Paul II pointed out a
danger of people becoming manipulated,
even unknowingly, through
– the whole of the organization of community
life
– through the production system
– through pressure from the mass media
• A Question: do we see people being
manipulated in this way?
6. The Rediscovery of Fraternity
in the Economy
• The succession of economic crises lead to a
rethinking of our models for economic
development, and to a change in lifestyles.
• It is also timely to rediscover the four Cardinal
Virtues, which are necessary for building and
preserving a society in accord with human
dignity:
–
–
–
–
Prudence
Temperance
Justice
Courage
7. Fraternity Extinguishes War
• Many conflicts are taking place in the world, and are
often met with indifference. The mission of Pope Francis
and of the whole Church is to bring Christ's love to the
victims of war, through her prayers and service.
– "I appeal forcefully to all those who sow violence and death by
force of arms: in the person you today see simply as an enemy
to be beaten, discover rather your brother or sister, and hold
back your hand! Give up the way of arms and go out to meet the
other in dialogue, pardon and reconciliation, in order to rebuild
justice, trust and hope around you!"
– "Nevertheless, as long as so great a quantity of arms are in
circulation as at present, new pretexts can always be found for
initiating hostilities. For this reason, I make my own the appeal of
my predecessors for the non-proliferation of arms and for
disarmament of all parties, beginning with nuclear and chemical
weapons disarmament."
8. Corruption and Organized Crime
Threaten Fraternity
• Fraternity generates social peace because it creates a
balance:
– between freedom and justice,
– between personal responsibility and solidarity,
– between the good of individuals and the common good.
• And so a political community must act in a transparent
and responsible way to favour all this. Citizens must feel
themselves represented by the public authorities in
respect for their freedom. Yet frequently a wedge is
driven between citizens and institutions by partisan
interests which disfigure that relationship, fostering the
creation of an enduring climate of conflict.
8. Corruption and Organized Crime
Threaten Fraternity
• Condemnation of various kinds of Organized Crime,
including:
• Drug Abuse
• Devastation of Natural Resources and Ongoing Pollution
• The Exploitation of Labor
• Illicit Money Trafficing
• Financial Speculation
• Prostitution
• Human Trafficking
• Crimes and Abuses against Minors
• Slavery
• The Treatment of Migrants
8. Corruption and Organized Crime
Threaten Fraternity
• When we look to crime and punishment,
we cannot help but think of the inhumane
conditions in so many prisons, where
those in custody are often reduced to a
subhuman status in violation of their
human dignity and stunted in their hope
and desire for rehabilitation.
9. Fraternity helps to Preserve and
Cultivate Nature
• The human family has received from the Creator
a common gift: nature. We are called to exercise
a responsible stewardship over it.
• A question: how are we using the earth's
resources? In particular, why are many people
still hungry when there is enough food produced
for all?
• A reminder of the necessary universal
destination of all goods which is one of the
fundamental principles of Catholic Social
teaching.
10. Conclusion
– "Fraternity needs to be discovered, loved,
experienced, proclaimed and witnessed to.
But only love, bestowed as a gift from God,
enables us to accept and fully express
fraternity."
• May Mary, the Mother of Jesus, help us to
understand and live every day the
fraternity that springs up from the heart of
her Son, so as to bring peace to each
person on this our beloved earth.