ROME — Pope Francis called for prayers for peace in Ukraine on Wednesday, urging the faithful to beg God to intervene so that “dialogue may prevail.”
“I ask you to pray the Our Father for peace in Ukraine, now and throughout this Day,” the pontiff said following his weekly general audience in the Vatican.
“Let us ask the Lord to grant that the country may grow in the spirit of brotherhood, and that all hurts, fears and divisions will be overcome,” he added.
In his appeal the pope also made reference to the “millions” intentionally starved to death in the Holodomor, the Ukrainian genocide engineered by Soviet premier Joseph Stalin from 1932-1933.
“They are a people who have suffered; they have suffered from hunger, suffered from much brutality and they deserve peace,” Francis said.
“May the prayers and supplications that today rise up to heaven touch the minds and hearts of world leaders, so that dialogue may prevail and the common good be placed ahead of partisan interests,” he said, before adding: “Please, no more war.”
Last Sunday, Pope Francis warned that possible Russia’s military buildup at the border with Ukraine threatens the security of the entire “European continent.”
“I am following with concern the increase of tensions that threaten to inflict a new blow to the peace in Ukraine, and call into question the security of the European continent, with wider repercussions,” the pope said.
“Those who pursue their own interests, to the detriment of others, disregard their human vocation, as we were all created as brothers and sisters,” Francis asserted, before announcing a special day of prayer for a peaceful resolution to the conflict.
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