Leo XIV asked for peace and understanding for 2026: "The world is not saved by sharpening swords, but by welcoming everyone"

The Pope celebrated the first mass of the year in St. Peter's and called for a "disarmed and disarming" peace in the face of the increase in global military spending

Vatican City. – Pope Leo XIV warned this Thursday that the world is not saved by "sharpening swords", but through forgiveness, understanding and welcome, when leading the first mass of the year, which coincided with the 59th World Day of Peace, in St. Peter's Basilica.

During his homily, the American pontiff, of the Augustinian order, evoked Saint Augustine to highlight that one of the essential traits of God is the gratuitousness of his love, manifested in the image of a newborn child, naked and defenseless. From this reflection, he insisted that humanity is not redeemed through oppression or the elimination of the other, but through a constant effort to understand, forgive, liberate and welcome, without fear or calculations.

Leo XIV, who is experiencing the beginning of a year as pope for the first time after being elected last May, emphasized that the arrival of 2026 represents an opportunity to begin a new life marked by the ability to forgive. Before some 5,000 faithful, he described the year that begins as an open path that must be traveled with freedom, reconciliation, and Christian commitment. The pontiff also urged embracing an idea of peace "disarmed and disarming", especially in favor of the most humble, in a world context marked by tensions and conflicts. This call takes on special relevance as the conclusion approaches, on January 6th, of the Jubilee initiated by Pope Francis.

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The celebration coincided with World Peace Day, for which Leo XIV published his first pontifical message on December 8th, entitled “Peace be with you all. Towards a disarmed and disarming peace”. In that text, he warned about the lack of hope in many current speeches and denounced the 9.4% increase in global military spending during 2024, despite the lessons left by the wars of the last century. The Pope also expressed concern about growing global instability, noting that, beyond the principle of legitimate defense, rearmament is justified with narratives of constant threat. In his opinion, this logic normalizes war and distances the real possibility of a close and lasting peace. Finally, Leo XIV called on the faithful and the international community to embrace peace not as an unattainable ideal, but as a daily commitment that should guide personal, social, and political decisions.