“The Pope invites us to reflect on forgiveness as the key to achieving world peace. For next year, the main theme of the World Day of Peace is ‘Forgive us our offenses, grant us your peace’“.

The title of the Message of the 58th World Day of Peace, which will be celebrated on 1 January 2025, corresponds to the biblical and ecclesial understanding of the Jubilee Year. It is inspired in particular by the Encyclical Letters Laudato Sí and Fratelli Tutti, and above all by the concepts of Hope and Forgiveness, which are at the heart of the Jubilee, a time for conversion that calls us not to condemn, but instead to bring about reconciliation and peace.

When considering the reality of conflicts and social sins afflicting humanity today in light of the hope inherent in the Jubilee tradition of the forgiveness of sins and the cancellation of debts, together with the reflections of the Fathers of the Church in this regard, concrete principles emerge that can lead to a much-needed spiritual, social, economic, ecological and cultural change.

Only from a genuine conversion on all levels – personal, local, and international – will true peace be able to flourish, not only in the cessation of conflicts but also in a new reality in which wounds are healed and each person’s dignity is recognized.