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Pope Leo Condemned political leaders who invoke religious beliefs to justify conflicts or nationalist policies, labeling such actions as blasphemy – a serious sin that disrespects or insults God.
First American PopeIn a message issued next of the Catholic Church World Peace Day on January 1 did not name specific leaders but urged believers to oppose such uses of the faith.
“Unfortunately, it has become common to drag the language of faith into political battles, to bless nationalism and to justify violence and armed conflict in the name of religion,” the pontiff said.
He added: “Believers must, first of all, by the testimony of their lives, actively refute these forms of blasphemy that profane God’s holy name.”
In the four-page message issued annually by the leader of the 1.4 billion-member church, Leo also warned against the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in warfare.
“There is a growing tendency to shirk responsibility among political and military leaders, as decisions about life and death are increasingly ‘handed’ to machines,” he said.
“It marks an unprecedented and devastating betrayal of the legal and philosophical principles of humanism that underpin and protect every civilization.”
Leo was chosen by the world’s cardinals in May to succeed the late Pope Francishas talked about it many times in his first year Challenges posed by AI,
He also condemned violence in the name of religion, he told Christian leaders in the Middle East during his first trip abroad as Pope. during a trip to Türkiye Last month he said “strongly reject the use of religion to justify war, violence or any form of fundamentalism”.
In the new message, the Pope also lamented the global increase in military spending, citing data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute that shows worldwide military outlays are set to increase by 9.4% in 2024, reaching a total of $2.7 trillion, or 2.5% of global GDP.
Leo warned against the “confrontational logic (which) now dominates global politics, deepening instability and unpredictability by the day”.