By Barb Arland-Fye
Editor
St. John XXIII published his encyclical, “Pacem in Terris, On Establishing Universal Peace in Truth, Justice, Charity and Liberty” in the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the world narrowly averted nuclear war 62 years ago. The pope said, “… true and lasting peace among nations cannot consist in the possession of an equal supply of armaments but only in mutual trust.”
His encyclical, which defined the human rights and responsibilities that foster justice, which leads to peace, inspired creation of the Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award, established by the Davenport Catholic Interracial Council of the Diocese of Davenport. On July 9, Bishop Silvio José Báez Ortega, O.C.D., who has advocated courageously for justice and peace in his beloved homeland of Nicaragua, will receive this year’s award on July 9.
The award ceremony comes at a time of escalating, perilous conflict in the Middle East, in which the U.S. has become embroiled, and war rages on in Ukraine, Gaza and in other parts of the world. On June 21, the U.S. military carried out massive precision strikes on the three key nuclear facilities in the Iranian regime, President Donald Trump announced. He said the objective was “destruction of Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity and a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the world’s number one state sponsor of terror.”
Response from our Catholic leaders was swift and appropriate. “War does not solve problems, but rather it amplifies them and produces deep wounds in the history of people that take generations to heal,” Pope Leo XIV told the gathering in St. Peter’s Square after the Angelus prayer June 22. “Let nations chart their future with works of peace, not with violence and bloody conflicts!” (https://tinyurl.com/34z7jd2t)
“With all men and women of good will, we beg Almighty God to end the proliferation of acts of war and to inspire dialogue before more innocent people are harmed,” Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio said in his June 22 statement. “My heart goes out to all victims and also to those whose lives are in danger. Let us beg the Prince of Peace for an end to hostilities,” continued Archbishop Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Archbishop for the U.S Military Services, USA.
For Christians, Bishop Báez has said, a commitment to human dignity “is decisive.” We have the ability — which we must exercise — “to create relationships based on a sense of community, working to build more peaceful societies, more just, more human.”
Pope Leo XIV advocates for peace consistently in homilies, prayer services and general audiences. “Help us, too, and help each other to build bridges, with dialogue, with meetings, uniting us all to be one people, always in peace,” he said from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica following his election May 8. He wants to walk together with us, “as a united Church always seeking peace, justice, always seeking to work as men and women who are faithful to Jesus Christ, without fear, to proclaim the Gospel, to be missionaries.”
Practicing justice requires patience, perseverance and self-sacrifice, as St. Paul VI acknowledged in his World Day of Peace message in 1972 titled “If You Want Peace, Work for Justice.” The Holy Father said the work of peace “always demands some sacrifice of prestige and self-interest: Perhaps more greatness of soul is needed for yielding to the ways of justice and peace than for fighting for and imposing on an adversary one’s rights, whether true or alleged.” Read his message for more insights ((https://tinyurl.com/476zvpea).
“The world will never be the dwelling place of peace, till peace has found a home in the heart of each and every man, till every man preserves in himself the order ordained by God to be preserved,” St. John XXIII said. All of us — wherever we were born, whatever our political, social, cultural, ethnic status — are children of the same God, with the same human rights to not only survive but to thrive. We cannot forget that fact; we must treat others with the dignity that we expect for ourselves!
When we witness a violation of human rights, we must hold our elected leaders at all levels of government accountable and demand better. Contact our members of Congress (congress.gov) and President Trump (whitehouse.gov) to insist on diplomacy and peacemaking internationally — and at home. Send them a link to the Pacem in Terris encyclical (https://tinyurl.com/ycb68fva) after you finish reading it. The message is as timely today as it was in 1963.
The flourishing of human society demands that we be guided by justice, respect the rights of others and be “animated by such love” that makes us “feel the needs of others” as our own, St. John XXIII said.
Barb Arland-Fye, Editor
arland-fye@davenportdiocese.org
