Amid a climate of solemn jubilee following the recent canonization of St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, Pope Leo XIV addressed the crowd gathered for the Angelus today, offering a vibrant message of gratitude, memory, and hope.

“Dear brothers and sisters, before concluding this long-awaited celebration, I wish to greet and thank all of you who have come in great numbers to celebrate the two new saints. I greet with affection the bishops and priests. I receive with deference the official delegations and the distinguished authorities,” the Pontiff began in a warm and cordial tone.

The Holy Father recalled that just a day earlier, the Church had elevated to the altars as blessed Edoardo Profittlich, a Jesuit beatified in Tallinn, and Maria Magdalena Bodi, a young laywoman recognized in Hungary — both martyrs in defense of the faith during totalitarian persecution — calling them “courageous witnesses to the beauty of the Gospel.”

Aware of the world’s wounds, Leo XIV made a fervent call for peace: “We entrust to the intercession of the saints and of the Virgin Mary our unceasing prayer for peace, especially in the Holy Land and in Ukraine, and in all other territories bloodied by war. To those in power, I repeat: listen to the voice of conscience! Apparent victories obtained by arms… are in reality defeats and never bring peace or security.”

His words were a providential echo of justice and reconciliation, reaffirming that “God does not want war, he wants peace, and supports those who commit to breaking the spiral of hatred and following the path of dialogue.”

With this intervention, the Pope emphasized that holiness is not born in comfort, but in the heroism of love lived without limits—a living testimony for a century ravaged by divisions and conflicts.

Full text Angelus 

Dear brothers and sisters,

Before concluding this long-awaited celebration, I would like to greet and thank all of you who have come in such large numbers to celebrate these two new Saints!  I cordially greet the bishops and priests.  I respectfully welcome the official Delegations and distinguished civil Authorities.

In this atmosphere, it is marvellous to recall that yesterday the Church was also enriched by two new Blesseds.  In Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, Jesuit Archbishop Edoardo Profittlich was beatified.  He was killed in 1942 during the Soviet regime’s persecution of the Church.  In Verszprém, Hungary, the young laywoman Maria Maddalena Bódi was beatified.  She was killed in 1945 for resisting soldiers who intended to assault her.  Let us praise the Lord for these two martyrs, courageous witnesses to the beauty of the Gospel!

To the intercession of the Saints and the Virgin Mary, we entrust our unceasing prayer for peace, especially in the Holy Land and Ukraine, and in every other land blood-stained by war.  To those in power, I repeat: listen to the voice of conscience!  The apparent victories achieved with weapons, which sow death and destruction, are in reality defeats and never bring peace or security!  God does not want war, he wants peace, and he strengthens those who are committed to leaving behind the spiral of hatred and taking the path of dialogue.