Pope Francis said while dialogue with the Islamic State may seem a long way off, he would never close the door.
Admitting dialogue with the likes of the Islamic State may seem impossible, the Holy Father replied, “I never count anything as lost. Never. Never close the door. It’s difficult, you could say almost impossible, but the door is always open.”
The Holy Father was speaking to reporters on the way back from Strasbourg where he addressed the European Parliament and Council of Europe.
Pope Francis elaborated on his comments, telling journalists the threat of terrorism is not the only horror weighing on the world.
“Slavery is a reality inserted in the social fabric today, and has been for some time: slave labor, the trafficking of persons, the sale of children — it’s a drama. Let’s not close our eyes to this. Slavery is a reality today, the exploitation of persons,” he explained.
“But there is another threat, too,” he said, the threat of “state terrorism,” when tensions rise and an individual nation decides on its own to strike, feeling it has “the right to massacre terrorists and with the terrorists many innocent people fall.”
Nations have a right and duty to stop “unjust aggressors,” he said, but they must act in concert and in accordance with international law.
Sources