2023-05-30 18:48:00
May 30, 2023 / 11:48 a.m.
This Tuesday the video was published with the prayer intention of Pope Francis for the next month of June, in which he asks to put an end to torture and those “more sophisticated practices such as degrading treatment, the annulment of the senses or mass arrests in inhumane conditions”.
In the video, the Holy Father points out that torture is not something of the past, but “unfortunately, it is part of our history today.” “How is it possible that the human capacity for cruelty is so great?” he questions.
Given this, Pope Francis exhorts to end “this horror”. “It is essential to put the dignity of the person above all else,” he stresses, while recalling that Jesus was “tortured and crucified.”
The Pontiff also points out that not eradicating this type of violence is allowing the victims to be treated as “things” and not as people, “causing death or permanent psychological and physical damage for a lifetime.”
“Let us pray that the international community commits itself concretely to the abolition of torture, guaranteeing support for the victims and their families”, concludes Pope Francis.
The Holy Father has chosen this prayer intention in the month in which the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is commemorated, established for June 26.
In statements published by Vatican News, Fr. Frédéric Fornos, international director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, said that “whatever the reasons, torture cannot be legitimized.”
“Francis said it clearly many times, for example: ‘Torturing people is a mortal sin! That the Christian communities commit to supporting the victims of torture,’” he recalled.
The Holy Father entrusts each month to this Worldwide Prayer Network the intentions that express his great concerns for humanity and for the mission of the Church.
The Network’s website explains that the prayer intentions are “a global call to transform our prayer into concrete gestures” and be “a compass for a mission of compassion for the world.”
Eduardo Berdejo is a graduate of the National University of San Marcos (Peru). He has been part of the ACI Prensa team since 2001.
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