At a time of great complexity for European and world societies, Pope Leo addressed a strong and clear call to migrants, welcome communities and human traffickers during his meeting with integration realities present in the Plaza del Cristo.
The Pontiff stressed the importance of respecting the laws of the country that welcomes, inviting migrants to integrate with confidence in the host community. “To you, dear migrant brothers, it is a noble and necessary part of this journey: to open yourselves with confidence to the community that welcomes you, to learn its language, to respect its laws, to know its customs, to participate in the common life and to offer with gratitude your gifts,” said Pope Leo.
The appeal is part of a growing social and humanitarian tension, where integration becomes a challenge not only for migrants, but also for communities that welcome them. The Pope recalled that “every society that welcomes has duties towards those who arrive” and that mutual respect can foster a process of social rebirth, in which human dignity is exalted through shared responsibility.
But the intervention of His Holiness Leo XIV was not limited to the promotion of civil cohabitation. With firm and decisive tone, the Pope turned to the traffickers of human beings, condemning without means terms the practices of exploitation and violence that feed the traffic of people. “Make it! Convert yourselves!”, he exclaimed, asking them to “strain the chains” and to return what they have subtracted, to “repair how much you can” and to leave room for divine mercy.
The words of Pope Leo XIV were a real anathema against those who organize death and suffering paths, exploiting the vulnerability of the weakest. “The money torn from the vulnerability of the poor will not give peace, honor, or future,” he said, underlining how every lost or deceived life before divine justice will be called to account.
The Pope concluded his speech recalling that “the last word cannot have fear, neither indifference, nor the violence of those who speculate on human life”. The true hope, he said, lies in Christ, who identifies himself with the stranger and invites us to recognize him in every brother in need of welcome, protection and love.
Pope Leo’s appeal is part of a historical moment in which the challenge of immigration requires courage, justice and mercy. Only through a shared and sincere commitment can a more just world be built, respecting the dignity of every human being and in the fight against those who feed evil and pain in the name of profit.
The article Pope Leo XIV to migrants: “Respect the laws of the host countries.” To the traffickers: “Ferm and convert” comes from IlNewyorkese.
