Meeting with the civil authorities of Algeria, Pope Leo XIV calls for societies to foster oases of peace in which human life and dignity are recognized as inviolable and never exploited.
By Devin Watkins Pope Leo XIV met with authorities, civil society, and diplomatic corps in Algiers on the first day of his three-day Apostolic Journey to Algeria. After meeting with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune at the presidential palace, the Pope addressed around 1,400 civil authorities at the Djamaa el Djazair Conference Center. He thanked the President for the invitation to visit Algeria in the first year of his Petrine Ministry, recalling that he has visited Annaba—ancient Hippo—in 2001 and 2013, “as a spiritual son of St. Augustine.” Pope Leo said he comes as a “pilgrim of peace” and noted that “we are brothers and sisters, for we have the same Father in heaven.” He praised the Algerian people for their culture of encounter and reconciliation, as well as for their spirit of solidarity, hospitality, and community. The Pope pointed to the great generosity shown by the Algerian people in their practice of almsgiving, which stems from a sense of justice regarding wealth. “This view of justice is both simple and radical for it recognizes the image of God in others,” he said. “Indeed, a religion without mercy and a society without solidarity are a scandal in God’s eyes.” Pope Leo XIV invited the civil leaders of Algeria to embrace dialogue and solidarity, so as to bring greater justice to our world. “By respecting the dignity of everyone and allowing yourselves to be moved by the pain of others, instead of multiplying misunderstandings and conflicts, you can surely become protagonists of a new chapter in history,” he said. The Pope recalled the words of his predecessors—Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis—on the importance of directing the process of globalization through “a model of social, political, and economic participation,” so that all people and nations may benefit from growth in the global economy. “I therefore urge those of you who hold positions of authority in this country not to fear this outlook but to promote a vibrant, dynamic and free civil society, in which young people in particular are recognized as capable of helping to broaden the horizon of hope for all,” he said. Pope Leo said a nation’s true strength lies in its ability to foster cooperation among citizens without authorities dominating but rather serving all people and promoting their development. He pledged the efforts of the Catholic Church to contribute to the common good of Algeria and strengthen the country’s identity as a bridge between nations of all hemispheres. The Pope pointed to Algeria’s location bordered by the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara desert, saying these geographical aspects represent a spiritual crossroads filled with “immense treasures of humanity.” “For the sea and the desert have been places of mutual enrichment among peoples and cultures for millennia,” he said. “Woe to us if we turn them into graveyards where hope also dies!” Deserts and seas contain majestic beauty, he added, saying their boundless expanse can help people reflect on transcendence. “Let us free these tremendous reservoirs of history and of the future from evil!” he said. “Let us multiply oases of peace; let us denounce and remove the causes of despair; and let us oppose those who profit from the misfortune of others!” Pope Leo urged Algeria’s civil leaders to unite spiritual energy, intelligence, and resources to make the land and the sea places of life, encounter, and wonder. Algerian society, noted the Pope, has seen fundamentalism and secularization manifest themselves, leading to tension between religious sensibility and modern life. “Religious symbols and words can become, on the one hand, blasphemous languages of violence and oppression, or on the other, empty signs in the immense marketplace of consumption that does not satisfy us,” he said. In conclusion, Pope Leo XIV encouraged the civil authorities of Algeria not to let “absurd polarizations” dishearten them but to confront them with intelligence. Polarization, he said, is “a sign that we are living in an extraordinary time of great renewal, in which those who keep their hearts free, and their consciences alert, can draw from the great spiritual and religious traditions new ways of seeing the world and an unshakable purpose in life.”