Editorial

A prayer for peace—and for the children and other innocent victims who suffer during wars

It is hard to believe we just marked the two-year anniversary of Russia’s unjust invasion of Ukraine and appear to be no closer to peace there.

Although finding accurate statistics as to the number of casualties on both sides in this conflict is challenging, most media outlets put those numbers in the thousands—some even in the tens of thousands—as the fighting continues.

We believe it is an appropriate time to ask: How can this be allowed to continue? If we ever needed to storm the heavens with prayers for an end to this conflict—and to other conflicts around the globe—now is the time.

Pope Francis intimated that question during his midday recitation of the Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square on Feb. 25.

“How many victims, people wounded, destruction, anguish, tears in a period that is becoming terribly long and whose end is not yet in sight,” the pope said, reminding some 20,000 visitors that Russia launched its major offensive on Feb. 24, 2022.

“It is a war that not only is devastating that region of Europe, but is unleashing a global wave of fear and hatred,” Pope Francis said.

We only need look at the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel and the chaos in the Congo and Nigeria, among other places, which punctuate our Holy Father’s point about civil unrest around the globe.

And we also learned at least 15 people were killed in an attack by gunmen on Catholics gathered for Sunday Mass in a Burkina Faso village on Feb. 25.

Burkina Faso is located in Africa’s Sahel region, which separates North Africa from Sub-Saharan Africa and has one of the largest Christian communities in the region.

According to media reports, 12 Catholics were dead at the scene in the village of Essakane, with another three dying while being treated at a health center, and two others wounded, according to a statement from Bishop Laurent Birfuoré Dabiré of the Diocese of Dori in Northern Burkina Faso, which includes Essakane.

As reported by Catholic News Service, dozens of people at the Feb. 25 Angelus gathering held up banners bearing the word “nonviolence” in Italian.

“While I renew my deepest affection for the tormented Ukrainian people and pray for all, especially for the numerous innocent victims,” the pope said, “I plead for that little bit of humanity to be found that will allow the creation of the conditions for a diplomatic solution in search of a just and lasting peace.”

Pope Francis also asked the crowd to pray “for Palestine, for Israel and for the many peoples torn apart by war, and to concretely help those who suffer! Think of all the suffering; think of the wounded children—innocents.”

That children are among the victims of these conflicts should break our hearts. They indeed are the innocent victims who should never be among the casualties. But we have learned through the history of humanity that the tragedy of war spares no one.

During his Feb. 25 Angelus prayer, the pope also noted he is concerned about the increasing violence in eastern Congo, and he joins that nation’s bishops in asking everyone to pray for peace, “hoping for a cessation of the fighting and the search for a sincere and constructive dialogue.”

Pope Francis joined the bishops of Nigeria and the leaders of the Dicastery for Evangelization as well in denouncing “the increasingly frequent kidnappings in Nigeria.”

“I express my closeness in prayer to the Nigerian people, hoping that efforts will be made to ensure that the rapid spread of these incidents be curbed as much as possible,” the pope said.

While we cannot predict the future of this unrest around the globe, there is one thing we are certain of: the longer these wars continue, the more the heartbreak will escalate for innocent people caught in the crossfire of the chaos.

As we continue our Lenten journey, we must not forget our brothers and sisters around the world who suffer.

And like our Holy Father, may our prayers include petitions for peace—in Ukraine, Russia, Israel, Palestine, Congo, Burkina Faso and Nigeria—and in many other places where the perils of war continue to be prevalent.

—Mike Krokos