Pope deplores ‘desire for domination and profit’ driving environmental destruction

‘The deep-set causes of conflict and the exploitation of creation stem from an ethical and cultural crisis, including the loss of a sense of limits, the desire for domination, the pursuit of immediate profit, and the inability to recognise the God-given dignity of each human person.’

Human suffering and the “accelerating disruption to the harmonious balance of creation” are not unrelated phenomena but a “single plea for healing and peace arising from a wounded world”, said Pope Leo XIV in his message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation today.

The Season of Creation runs from today until 4 October, the feast of St Francis of Assisi. The theme Pope Leo has chosen for this year comes from Isaiah 2:4: nations “shall beat their swords into ploughshares”, “transforming what destroys life into what sustains it”.

“Today, we too often witness the very opposite, as efforts continue to be directed toward violence and war,” the Pope lamented.

“War leaves wounds that extend far beyond the battlefield. It claims lives, tears families apart and forces millions to flee their homes, thereby deepening fear, injustice and division. War also leaves behind social and ecological destruction that endures for generations.

“Moreover, the interaction between armed conflicts and environmental degradation often creates a vicious cycle, which destroys ecosystems, contaminates essential resources, such as air and water, and undermines food security.

“This fuels poverty, inequality, and new social tensions that can contribute to the emergence of further conflicts. What is more, war creates wounds that damage the whole fabric of life, harming not only individual persons and communities, but also their broader network of relationships with the whole human family, and their harmony with creation.

“Let us imagine a world in which the energies currently invested in war are directed toward integral human development, to overcoming poverty, protecting human dignity and reconciling divided peoples. Such a vision reflects faith in the coming of God’s Kingdom.”

Pope Leo’s message echoed his previous calls for resources to protect life rather than to destroy it, for nations to fund peacebuilding, development and environmental protection instead of weapons.

During a visit to the headquarters of the United Nations World Food Programme in June, Pope Leo decried the “moral imbalance” that prioritises war over humanitarian aid, and in Cameroon in April he condemned “billions of dollars [being] spent on killing and destruction” while “the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found”.

He continued in today’s message: “What has been used for destruction can be redirected toward life, toward the care of the poor, the nourishment of the hungry, and the safeguarding of creation.

“This is the path of authentic ecological conversion, where the effects of our encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in our relationship with the world around us.

“In place of the weapons of war, the God of peace grants us the strength to heal, to reconcile and to build a civilisation of love.

“The true tools for building peace are not weapons of destruction, instead they are truth, dialogue, patience, goodness, justice, mercy, understanding, care and love. These flow from hearts shaped by the Gospel and sustained by God’s grace.

“Only these qualities possess the power to transform individuals, renew communities and heal the wounds of our world.”

Pope Leo also reiterated his critique of the reckless pursuit of economic growth that characterises the “culture of power”, seeking “immediate profit” without any “sense of limits”.

“It reveals a deeper failure to live in God’s image and likeness, to respect life and to care for the earth entrusted to us,” he said. “This is not only a political failure, but also a moral and spiritual one.

“Peace, then, begins in the heart and flows outward to our relationships, communities and the broader world. May the Lord grant us the courage to walk along this path, so that in our time, swords may indeed be beaten into ploughshares, and the promise of the Gospel may take deeper root in our world, and the peace of Christ may reign over all of creation.”

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