Pope Francis has called for deeper sense of dialogue, more investment on education and promoting a work culture as tools for building peace in the world.
The pontiff made the call on Saturday in a message to mark the 54th World Peace Day.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the World Day of Peace is marked by the Vatican on January 1 every year.
Delivering the Pope’s message, Most Rev. Adewale Martin’s, Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, said that the message was timely as peace, and absence of genuine dialogue appears to be a scarce commodity in the world today.
The Holy Father noted that Peace is both a gift from heaven and the fruit of a common commitment.
“Despite multiple efforts aimed at constructive dialogue between Nations, the deafening noise of wars and conflict is growing,” Francis said.
“I would like to propose three ways to build lasting peace. First is the dialogue between generations as a basis for the realisation of common projects.
“Second, Education as a factor of freedom, responsibility and development.
“Finally, Work for the full realisation of human dignity,” Francis said.
The pontiff said that in advancing peace as a common good there was the need for genuine dialogue between the keepers of memory, the elderly, and those who advance history, the young people.
He frowned at the global reduction of education budgets and the arbitrary increments in the budget for the acquisition of weapons of war.
“Investing in the instruction and education of the young generations is the main route which leads them, through specific generation, to profitably occupy their rightful place in the world of work,” Francis said.
He said that work is the basis on which Justice and solidarity are built in any community.
He added that all effort be geared at promoting the dignity of Jan labour and work rather than working to replace human work with technological progress made in the field of Artificial Intelligence.