Moral forces

Pope Benedict talks about the war in the Middle East every chance he gets, and his message has consistently been about human dignity and justice. He is concerned with people more than governments, and with governments only so far as they take care of their people.

CWNews reports on the growing anxiety in Rome, like everywhere else.

At a public audience on Sunday, August 6, the Holy Father spoke of his “bitter frustration that thus far, the pleas for an immediate ceasefire in this martyred region have been ignored.”

Some media folks have wondered what ‘role’ the Pope has in making pronouncements on the war, and he clarified it in this piece:

Pope Benedict has explained that his repeated public statements on the war in Lebanon have been an effort to mobilize forces in favor of peace.

“There are moral forces ready to create the understanding that the only solution is to live together,” the Pope told interviewers for German television networks. “These are the forces that we want to mobilize.”

“Naturally, the Holy See has no desire for political power,” the Pope said. “But we wish to call Christians– and all those who feel challenged by the voice of the Holy See in one way or another– to mobilize all the powers that recognize how war is the worst solution for everyone.”

Moral forces. Now those are the ones needed on the frontlines of this battle, UN and NATO notwithstanding.