Pope Francis condemns violence done in God’s name

Pope Francis is condemning

According to the head of the Roman Catholic church, religion is no justification for violence.

He made this known while speaking to about 50 participants in a conference on violence, Catholic News Agency reports.

On February 2, 2018, Pope Francis said: “The religious person knows that among the greatest blasphemies is to invoke God as the justification for one’s own sins and crimes.

“To invoke him in order to justify killing, mass murder, enslavement, exploitation in whatever form, oppression and persecution of individuals and entire populations… The religious person knows that God is the Holy One and that no one can claim to use his name in order to perpetrate evil.”

Pope Francis’ advice on stopping violence done in God’s name

At the conference titled “Tackling violence committed in the name of religion,” the Pontiff urged religious leaders to work hard to put an end to this problem.

In his words, religious leaders should “unmask any attempt to manipulate God for ends that have nothing to do with him or his glory.

“We need to show, with unremitting effort, that every human life is sacred, that it deserves respect, esteem, compassion, and solidarity, without regard for ethnicity, religion, culture, or ideological and political convictions.”

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Pope Francis on religious killings

Over the years, the Catholic leader has been very vocal about fighting violence committed in the name of religion.

In April 2017, he made reference to religious killings at the International Peace Conference in Cairo.

During his speech, he said, “We have an obligation to denounce violations of human dignity and human rights, to expose attempts to justify every form of hatred in the name of religion and to condemn these attempts as idolatrous caricatures of God."

“God, the lover of life, never ceases to love man, and so he exhorts us to reject the way of violence… For violence is the negation of every authentic religious expression…

“Violence promoted and carried out in the name of religion can only discredit religion itself.

“I renew my appreciation for your readiness to engage in reflection and dialogue on a subject of such dramatic import, and for your expert contribution to the growth of a culture of peace always founded on truth and love.”

Francis is the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church. He was elected pope on March 13, 2013.