Christian World | Pope Leo told Wednesday's audience that politics tending to people's wounds offers hope, and recalled Saturday's beatification of 81 martyrs in Guatemala and Spain

ACW | November 4, 2026 — Pope Leo XIV said on Wednesday that "politics that tends to the wounds of peoples and of those who suffer injustice offers grounds for hope," according to the Vatican's official text of his general audience in St. Peter's Square.

The remarks were part of his catechesis series on the documents of the Second Vatican Council, focusing on the 1965 pastoral constitution Gaudium et Spes and its sections on economic, social and political life.

Leo quoted Pope Francis as saying "war is a failure of politics and of humanity, a shameful capitulation, a stinging defeat before the forces of evil." Citing the council document, he stressed "eliminating discrimination against the most vulnerable social groups and migrants."

"The heart of the economy is work," the pope said, adding that work "must never be distorted to the detriment of people, the common good or creation." Workers have the right and duty to take part in decisions affecting them, including through trade unions, he said.

At the end of the audience, Leo asked the faithful to pray for his trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, which he said begins "the day after tomorrow," Friday, Nov. 6, Vatican News reported.

He also noted two beatifications set for Saturday, Nov. 7, Vatican News said: Franciscan priest Augusto Rafael Ramírez Monasterio, killed "in hatred of the faith" in 1983, in Antigua, Guatemala; and diocesan priest Francesco González de Córdova and 79 companions in Santander, Spain.

The second group, which includes priests, seminarians and lay people, "did not hesitate to shed their blood out of love for Christ" during "the Spanish persecution of the last century," the pope said.

Background: ACW earlier reported that Pope Leo will visit Uruguay, Argentina and Peru on a 12-day trip.

Why it matters: The pope recalled that the Second Vatican Council linked threats to world peace to unequal economic development that disregards creation, and said this is even truer today, Vatican News reported.

ACW will continue to follow this story.

Sources: Holy See — official text of the Nov. 4, 2026 general audience; Vatican News — general audience report; Vatican News — prayers for the papal trip and beatifications

Photo: Vatican Media