Efforts of the EoF youth to rebuild an economy rooted in peace
Today, a new economy, inspired by Francis of Assisi, can and must be an Earth-friendly economy and an economy of peace. Being economists and entrepreneurs “of Francis” necessarily means being women and men of peace: not being at peace for peace’s sake.
For this reason, we the young people of the world, who are called to give a soul to the economy, say, Enough! Stop the war, lay down your weapons, resume the path of dialogue. We also ask for everyone’s commitment so that the time prophesied by Isaiah will draw near: “they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”(Isaiah 2:4).
As young people, we no longer tolerate resources being taken away from schools, from health care, from our present and future to build weapons and fuel the wars needed to sell them. We would like to tell our children that the world at war is gone forever.
For this reason, we share Pope Francis’ words, “Every war leaves our world worse than it was before. War is a failure of politics and of humanity, a shameful capitulation, a stinging defeat before the forces of evil.”(Fratelli Tutti, 261).
INITIATIVES
STATEMENT
Against the economy of extermination. For justice in Palestine
We, young members of the global community of The Economy of Francesco, come together to strongly denounce what is happening in Palestine: a human and collective tragedy that unfolds day after day, fueled by an economic system that turns suffering into profit, destruction into opportunities for financial growth, and injustice into normality. We cannot remain silent in the face of an economy that:
- uses Gaza as a testing ground for weapons and military technologies, which are then sold around the world as “battle-tested”;
- invests in the demolition of homes, schools, hospitals, destroying the foundations of any future;
- controls access to vital resources such as water and energy, using them as tools of domination;
- mobilizes universities, tech companies, tourism platforms, and investment funds to support occupation, segregation, and permanent surveillance.
This economy is not an accident of history. It is the consequence of a model that places power and profit above human dignity, that considers some lives expendable, that fuels inequalities instead of healing them. As young economists, entrepreneurs, researchers, activists, and people of faith, united under the sign of fraternity, we say: enough.
We call for:
- the immediate halt to the massacre of the Palestinian people and a permanent ceasefire;
- the end of economic and political complicity that makes violence possible and profitable;
- the suspension of trade, technological, and military agreements with those who fuel oppression;
- full transparency and the concrete commitment of our institutions, universities, and businesses not to support—directly or indirectly—a system of apartheid, colonization, and destruction.
We stand for justice, freedom, and dignity. We stand with the Palestinian people, and with all victims of injustice and violence, including hostages, Israeli civilians, and the victims of every form of terrorism, including economic terrorism.
Because every life matters.
Because peace is justice.
Because fraternity is the only possible economy.
STEPS FOR PEACE
The young people of the Economy of Francesco responded to Pope Francis’ invitation to make concrete gestures of peace with a symbolic pilgrimage from Jerusalem to Assisi, equal to 8 million steps. Through a global relay and a pedometer app, many took part by donating their own steps.
Discover the project
MONEY FOR PEACE
The Money for Peace campaign, promoted by the EoF community, aims to raise awareness about the role of financial investments in armed conflicts and to promote ethical and responsible choices by consumers and institutions.
Want to be a peacemaker? Join us and go to the dedicated page
In the spirit of Advent, a season of hope and reflection, EoF proposes a series of regional events under the central theme of “Peace”. These gatherings will spotlight the vital work and progress of our Community working in areas experiencing conflict, instability, and poverty.
We would like to make a stand and ask for peace, from our different spaces, with our words and the words of those who have worked for it in their time. A time will come in which the future generations will ask “How could this happen?”, or “What did you do when this was happening?”
Watch our call for peace: between people, in the society we live in, between states. We need peace achieved by peaceful means: dialogue, understanding of the other’s perspectives, critical thinking, rejection of violence.
The course of the war in Ukraine has become so serious, devastating and threatening, as to cause great concern.
Intervista a Martina Pignatti, direttrice della ONG “Un ponte per” che da oltre trent’anni agisce per dare uno spazio alla non violenza.
RIFLESSIONE – Note di un cristiano ingenuo in margine al conflitto riacceso dall’invasione russa dell’Ucraina
We are young economists, entrepreneurs and change-makers in the world, we call to give spirit to the economy, and the need to stop the war, leave the weapons and return to the path of dialogue.
Bishop Sorrentino reminds us how St. Francis not only lived through war, but also suffered it firsthand and now traces for us a path to peace.
It seems that the time has come for Europe to grow up and start to be responsible for its own destiny.
A video from Domenico Sorrentino, Bishop of Assisi-Nocera Umbra-Gualdo Tadino and president of EoF Organizing Committee. A call to pray, stop the war and rebuild a fraternal economy.
We orginized the webinair “The Better Kind of Politics” in the context of crisis in Ukraine, in light of #FratelliTutti encyclical letter.
We all want to do something concrete against the war. This is the campaign created by the youth of EOF, called “Less gas for more peace”.
It is with great shock, sadness and sorrow to witness the acts of war in the very heart of Europe. How can it be that, in the 21st century, nations are still using force to solve their geopolitical and geoeconomic goals, neglecting human wellbeing?
