Pope Leo XIV delivered a pointed appeal for peace and Christian witness during a visit to one of Africa’s most revered Marian shrines on April 19, telling thousands of pilgrims in Angola that “it is love that must triumph, not war”.
The Holy Father made the remarks at the Marian shrine of Mamã Muxima during the Angola leg of his Apostolic Journey to Africa. His visit to Angola followed stops in Algeria and Cameroon, and formed part of an 11-day journey that also includes Equatorial Guinea.
Earlier in the journey, during a meeting with the academic community at the Catholic University of Central Africa in Yaoundé, Cameroon, Pope Leo urged young people to resist the temptation to emigrate and instead place their gifts at the service of their own country. He invited them to work for the common good by putting their knowledge at the service of their fellow citizens.
