Pope: Humanity's fate is in danger

(Patria) - Pope Leo warned yesterday that humanity's future is in danger of being "tragically threatened" due to ongoing wars and the collapse of international law, in a sharp speech in Equatorial Guinea during a four-nation African tour.

The first American Pope, who has angered US President Donald Trump after becoming more open in his criticisms in recent weeks, also condemned the "colonization" of Earth's oil and mineral resources, which he said fuels bloody conflicts.

"Humanity's fate is in danger of being tragically threatened without a change of course and taking political responsibility, and without respect for institutions and international agreements," the Pope said.

In a speech before the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, and other political leaders, the head of the Catholic Church with 1.4 billion members stated: "God does not want this."

"His holy name must not be desecrated by the will for domination, arrogance, or discrimination. Above all, it must never be invoked to justify choices and actions that bring death," he emphasized.

Pope Leo, who visited Equatorial Guinea as part of the final leg of an ambitious ten-day African tour, adopted a new, stronger speaking style during his stay in Africa, issuing sharp condemnations of war, inequality, and global leadership.

On Monday, at an event in Angola, he warned that many people in the world are "exploited by authoritarian rulers and deceived by the rich."

The Pope's comments lamenting the use of religion to justify violence echo his statements from March, when he said that God rejects the prayers of leaders whose "hands are full of blood."

Conservative Catholic commentators interpreted these remarks as directed against US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who uses Christian rhetoric to justify the war against Iran.

Leo has increasingly profiled himself as a vocal critic of that war in recent weeks, Reuters reports.