Pope to Italian youth: planet demands “good politics” that market peace
Meeting in the Vatican with some 150 representatives of businesses and cooperatives of the “Progetto Policoro” sponsored by the Italian Bishops’ Conference, Pope Francis highlights the urgent require for “better politics” in our war-torn instances.
By Lisa Zengarini
Pope Francis on Saturday praised Italian youths involved in a Church sponsored project aimed at supplying assistance to unemployed and underemployed young people today, saying their commitment contributes to a “better politics” close to people’s demands and consequently to creating peace in the planet.
The Pope was addressing representatives of businesses and cooperatives element of the “Progetto Policoro”, a project sponsored by the Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI) to support young people today integrate in the labour marketplace by organizing vocational instruction programmes, advertising cooperatives and generating intermediaries, such as “community animators”.
War is the failure of politics
Referring to the theme of peace selected by the project for this year, the Pope highlighted that our war-torn instances make the require for “good politics”, that listens to the people today and fosters peace, even additional urgent currently.
“War – he emphasized – is the failure of politics. It tends to make us touch the absurdity of the arms race and its use for solving conflicts.”
“If armaments have been not produced for a year, hunger in the planet could be eliminated.”
Citing the biblical King Ahab of Israel and his wife Jezebel as an instance of the worst politics “which pursues unique interests and makes use of any implies to satisfy them”, and recalling the words of St. Ambrose, Pope Francis insisted that “A politics that workout routines energy as domination and not as a service is not capable of caring, tramples upon the poor, exploits the Earth and reacts to conflict with war.”
On the other hand – he continued – a constructive biblical instance we can draw from is Joseph, the son of Jacob: “Joseph, who personally suffered injustice, does not seek his personal interest but that of the people today, pays in particular person for the widespread very good, becomes a peacemaker, weaves relationships capable of innovating society”.
Tenderness and fruitfulness in politics
These two biblical examples, stated Pope Francis, support us to superior have an understanding of what sort of “spirituality” really should underpin political activity. He focused on two elements: tenderness and fruitfulness.
Tenderness, he stated, “is the appreciate that becomes close” to the least, the weakest, the poorest, though fruitfulness “is produced of sharing, of lengthy-term vision, of dialogues, of trust, of understanding, of listening. It implies hunting to the future and investing in future generations beginning processes rather than occupying spaces”.
“Time is higher than space”
The politician is a servant of the neighborhood
In light of this, Pope Francis, consequently, urged members of the Policoro Project to concentrate not on individual or political achieve, but on fostering entrepreneurship, creating dreams flourish by way of advertising people’s participation which, he stated, “is the balm of the wounds of democracy.”
“Your concern really should not be not electoral assistance or individual accomplishment, but involving people today, creating entrepreneurship, creating dreams flourish, creating people today really feel the beauty of belonging to a neighborhood. The politician is a servant when the politician is not a servant, he is a poor politician.”
Concluding the Pope encouraged them to continue their operate “always with the aim of serving” the neighborhood.
