Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity) has been hailed as the first major papal pronouncement on artificial intelligence. It is that, but also much more. An encyclical is a teaching document, and Pope Leo strives to teach us about what it means to be human, the perils of power, the basic principles of Catholic social teaching, the dignity of work and the travesty of war.

It was the pope’s detailed exploration of war that caught my eye, as he challenged the widespread belief that war is an inevitable part of human nature. For sinful humans, conflict may be inevitable, but it need not automatically lead to war. Human beings and societies are better than that. We are blessed with enormous capacities to prevent conflicts from turning into wars.

Yet the tragedy of our current era is that we do so little to build reconciliation and peace and turn far too quickly to destructive technologies that will obliterate those with whom we differ. Dialogue, diplomacy and forgiveness are human capacities that can and have been used to prevent conflicts from escalating. “It is much easier to start a war than to stop it, and yet discussion on conflict prevention remains tragically marginal.” Why are we not more eager to enhance the use of those attributes that lead to peace?

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Pope Leo has no hesitation in pointing to the powerful economic interests that benefit from the sale of ever-more destructive weapons of war. “The close link between economic interests, the military apparatus and political decisions produces an ‘armed nation,’ in which war appears as a natural extension of politics….The armaments industry, and countries that supply weapons, profit from a market that thrives precisely on conflicts.”

It is appalling that some humans seek to profit from mass killing. What a horrendous path to economic fortune. Yet here, the myth of war's inevitability takes hold. The merchants of war convince themselves that stockpiling weapons is a way to prevent war. However, the stockpiles are never large enough and must always grow higher and deeper.

Oddly enough, those mountains of weapons become an enticement to war, to striking first before the enemy gets an advantage.

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Is it any wonder that Pope Leo concludes that “the search for peace . . . has been lost as a point of reference on the international stage”? Even Canada, once a nation committed to peacemaking, has lost focus and chosen to “go big” on arms purchases.

“Choice” is the key term here. We choose to build for war, and we can instead choose to work for peace. Pope Leo offers five paths to peace. The first is to “disarm words.” Words! “We must examine our conscience regarding the words we use, the prejudices we have and the explicit or implicit aggression that lies within them.”

Second, peace can be built through justice. Peace is not just the absence of conflict. It is a positive reality. Sometimes justice hurts because it means surrendering or sharing something we would rather hold to ourselves.

Third, we should adopt the perspective of victims. Victims do not see the world in the same way as those in the mainstream culture. White Canadians see the comforts of our lifestyle as entitlements. Those on the outside know they must struggle to obtain those comforts. Some authority figure is always denying them access to what we take for granted. The difference is radical. Victims do not experience the world as we do.

Fourth, we should adopt a healthy realism that understands power dynamics but remains intent on changing the world for the better. Finally, we must see dialogue as the primary way for people with different opinions and experiences to co-exist. Listening, openness and spending time together are crucial to building societies of peace.

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Pope Leo counsels hope. “Those who make history are the peacemakers, not those who sow seeds of suffering.” Even in the darkest times, the Lord raises up women and men who persist in doing good, no matter what the odds. They protect the vulnerable and work for reconciliation.

Violence is not inevitable. Yet we live in a time of spiritual blindness, a blindness that stems from the inability or refusal to see the world from others’ perspectives. If we don’t seek to understand others, we are liable to condemn them for their differences. If we condemn them strongly enough, violence may ensue. However, we can and should do better. War is not inevitable. Peace is possible.