Pope Francis and a cardinal say it's time for the U.S. to act on guns

"I am praying for the children and adults who were killed, and for their families," Pope Francis said in his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square. The pope said it's time for new limits on the sale of guns.

Andrew Medichini/AP

Pope Francis says that his heart is broken over the mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, and that the U.S. must act to prevent the spread of guns.

"I am praying for the children and adults who were killed, and for their families. It is time to say enough to the indiscriminate trafficking of arms," Francis said on Wednesday, during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

In the attack, 19 students and two adults died. The 18-year-old gunman, who lived in Uvalde, reportedly bought at least two semi-automatic rifles after his most recent birthday.

People should be working now, the pope said, to ensure a similar tragedy can never happen again. In the U.S., his sentiment was shared by another senior Catholic leader: Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, the archbishop of Chicago.

"The Second Amendment did not come down from Sinai," Cupich said via Twitter. "The right to bear arms will never be more important than human life. Our children have rights too. And our elected officials have a moral duty to protect them."

The cardinal noted that research has shown the expired federal ban on certain rifles was effective in preventing the terror of mass shootings.

"As I reflect on this latest American massacre, I keep returning to the questions: Who are we as a nation if we do not act to protect our children? What do we love more: our instruments of death or our future?" Cupich asked.

There have been 27 school shootings so far this year in the U.S., according to Education Week, which tracks gun violence on K-12 school properties.

Comments

Pope Francis: Gun-makers are hypocrites if they call themselves Christians

MAX ROSSI/REUTERS Pope Francis criticized weapons manufacturers who call themselves Christians on Sunday. “They say one thing and do another,” he said. TURIN, Italy — People who manufacture weapons or invest in weapons industries are hypocrites if they call themselves Christian, Pope Francis said on Sunday. Francis issued his toughest condemnation to date of the weapons industry at a rally of thousands of young people at the end of the first day of his trip to the Italian city of Turin. "If you trust only men you have lost," he told the young people in a long, rambling talk about war, trust and politics after putting aside his prepared address. "It makes me think of ... people, managers, businessmen who call themselves Christian and they manufacture weapons. That leads to a bit a distrust, doesn't it?" he said to applause. He also criticized those who invest in weapons industries, saying "duplicity is the cur...

A day after March for Our Lives, Pope urges youth to speak out

Pope Francis blesses attendees and palm leaves during at St Peter's square on March 25, 2018 (CNN) A day after hundreds of thousands of people protested gun violence at March for Our Lives events in the US and around the globe, Pope Francis called on the world's youth to continue speaking out and standing up. "Dear young people, you have it in you to shout," the Pope said in his Palm Sunday address at St. Peter's Square in Rome. Pope Francis at the the end of Palm Sunday Mass in Vatican City Palm Sunday -- celebrated on the Sunday before Easter -- is commemorated by Christians as the day Jesus entered Jerusalem in the week of his crucifixion, when palm leaves were strewn in his path. Noting that this Palm Sunday coincides with World Youth Day, the pontiff used the opportunity to compare youth to Jesus's followers, who were scorned by his detractors. "It is up to you not to keep quiet," Pope Francis said. "...

Pope appeals for end to weapons' production, for solidarity with the elderly | USCCB

On World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, Pope Francis called on the faithful to reach out to the elderly, especially during the summer. During his Sunday Angelus address, he condemned the ongoing production of weapons amid so many global crises and he reflected on the importance of the gestures of offering, giving thanks and sharing during Mass. VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Many elderly people risk feeling an increasingly unbearable sense of loneliness, especially during summer, Pope Francis said. "Let us say 'no' to the loneliness of the elderly! Our future depends a great deal on how grandparents and grandchildren learn to live together," he said after praying the Angelus with visitors gathered in St. Peter's Square July 28. The day marked the Catholic Church's celebration of World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly , whose theme was, "Do not cast me off in my old age." ...

Vatican Gun Control

Search This Blog