Pope Francis, dedicated to peace diplomacy and called for nuclear abolition with the message “Use of atomic energy is a crime,” dies
Apr. 22, 2025
by Kohei Okata, Staff Writer
“The use of atomic energy for purposes of war is today, more than ever, a crime.” In his address in the A-bombed city of Hiroshima, which he visited on November 24, 2019, Pope Francis sent out a powerful message to realize a world without nuclear weapons and war.
About 2,000 people attended the Meeting for Peace held at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward, which began at 6:40 p.m. The pope exchanged words with atomic bomb survivors, Christians and various religious leaders, and laid a wreath of flowers at the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims. He then offered a prayer with all the participants for the victims.
After listening to the survivors recount their experiences of the atomic bombing, he delivered a 14-minute speech with his back to the cenotaph, in which he appealed that the possession and use of nuclear weapons is immoral and “how can we propose peace if we constantly invoke the threat of nuclear war?” He also said: “To remember, to journey together, to protect...these are three moral imperatives that can open a path to peace,” and explained the importance of conveying the catastrophic consequences of the atomic bombing to future generations.
The pope wrote a message in English when he visited the park: “I pray that the God of life will convert beauty to peace, unification and fraternity with love.”
(Originally published on April 22, 2025)
“The use of atomic energy for purposes of war is today, more than ever, a crime.” In his address in the A-bombed city of Hiroshima, which he visited on November 24, 2019, Pope Francis sent out a powerful message to realize a world without nuclear weapons and war.
About 2,000 people attended the Meeting for Peace held at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward, which began at 6:40 p.m. The pope exchanged words with atomic bomb survivors, Christians and various religious leaders, and laid a wreath of flowers at the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims. He then offered a prayer with all the participants for the victims.
After listening to the survivors recount their experiences of the atomic bombing, he delivered a 14-minute speech with his back to the cenotaph, in which he appealed that the possession and use of nuclear weapons is immoral and “how can we propose peace if we constantly invoke the threat of nuclear war?” He also said: “To remember, to journey together, to protect...these are three moral imperatives that can open a path to peace,” and explained the importance of conveying the catastrophic consequences of the atomic bombing to future generations.
The pope wrote a message in English when he visited the park: “I pray that the God of life will convert beauty to peace, unification and fraternity with love.”
(Originally published on April 22, 2025)
