Fr. Patton: Good Friday meditations are not to judge, but to inspire change

“In the reflections and prayers, the inspiration from current reality and from concrete people is evident,” particularly from the sufferings of Christians in the Middle East due to the war.

In this way, Father Francesco Patton of the Order of Friars Minor, summarized the origin of the meditations written for the Way of the Cross that will be presided over by Pope Leo XIV at the Colosseum on Good Friday evening.

In the following interview with Vatican News, Fr. Patton, who served as the Custos of the Holy Land from 2016 until June 2025, explained how the Pope’s choice coincided with the eighth centenary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi.

Since the day of his election, Pope Leo XIV has continuously invoked the gift of peace. He has expressed closeness and solidarity not only to the Holy Land but to all countries, peoples, and individuals suffering because of war.

This, after all, has been the Church’s line for over 100 years, since August 1, 1917, when Pope Benedict XV refused to bless the armies, defined the war being fought as an “useless slaughter,” and urged the leaders of the belligerent nations to reach a just and lasting peace through negotiation, respect for international law, the return of occupied territories, restoration of free movement, and disarmament to free resources to be invested in the common good and development.

Since then, the Church has always expressed closeness to populations devastated by war and repeatedly condemned armed conflicts, which continue to be an “useless slaughter.” Almost every Sunday after the Angelus and every Wednesday at the end of his catechesis at the General Audience, Pope Leo XIV has insisted on the necessity of achieving peace, not only in the Holy Land but in all countries currently involved in bloody wars.

Last Sunday, he used very strong words to reject violence perpetrated in the name of God, saying that God does not listen to the prayers of warmongers with hands stained with blood.