The abolition of torture

Pope Francis’ monthly prayer intention for June is for the abolition of torture in all of its forms throughout the world. The Pope made this appeal to eradicate the phenomenon in his Pope Video message, entrusted to the entire Catholic Church through the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.

The Holy Father decried torture as a scourge that is not just a thing of the past, but is still present today. “Torture is not past history. Unfortunately, it’s part of our history today.

How is it possible that the human capacity for cruelty is so huge?” he asks. “Let us put a stop to this horror of torture. It is essential to put the dignity of the person above all else” reads the appeal. “Otherwise, the victims are not persons, they are ‘things’, and can be mistreated mercilessly, causing death or permanent psychological and physical harm lasting a lifetime. Let us pray that the international community commit itself concretely to abolish torture, guaranteeing support to victims and their families”, he concludes.