By The pope also prayed for victims of war, recalled the Pardon of Assisi and urged Catholics to witness to the Eucharist by blessing meals and sharing with those in need.
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday expressed concern over the “alarming situation” in Ceuta and appealed for solutions capable of bringing peace, stability and justice to the Spanish enclave facing a major migration and humanitarian crisis.
“I am following with concern the alarming situation in Ceuta, praying to God that, through the intercession of Our Lady of Africa, solutions may be found to bring peace, stability and justice,” the pope said after leading the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square on Aug. 2.
His remarks followed the arrival of an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people from Morocco on July 30, many of whom attempted to reach Spanish territory by swimming around the border barriers.
According to figures provided by Spanish authorities, at least 67 people died, most of them by drowning. The influx overwhelmed the autonomous city’s capacity to respond and prompted authorities to install additional barriers near the El Tarajal border crossing.
The pope also renewed his appeal for an end to armed conflicts around the world.
“Let us continue to pray for peace, that wars may cease throughout the world and diplomatic solutions to conflicts may be found,” he said.
“Let us remember all the victims of hostilities, especially the weakest and most defenseless: children, the elderly and the sick,” he continued. “May the Lord comfort those who suffer and bless the work of those who bring aid and consolation.”
Pope Leo also recalled the Pardon of Assisi, the plenary indulgence traditionally associated with the Porziuncola chapel in Assisi, Italy.
“Saint Francis obtained this Indulgence from Pope Honorius III in 1216, having been inspired — while praying at the Porziuncola — by a vision of Jesus and Mary surrounded by angels,” he said.
“Let us thank the Lord for this great gift and treasure it, especially in this eighth centenary year of the Transitus of the Poor Man of Assisi, who died at the Porziuncola on 3 October 1226.”
Earlier, in his reflection before the Angelus, Pope Leo encouraged Catholics to rediscover the practice of blessing meals as a simple public witness to faith and a way of bringing the beauty of the Eucharist into everyday life.
“As we savor the grace of the Eucharist, let us commit ourselves to bearing witness to its beauty in our daily actions, beginning with blessing meals at the table with family and friends,” he said.
The pope reflected on the Gospel account of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, explaining that Christ’s miracles reveal both his care for humanity and the salvation he offers to the world.
“When we listen to the Gospel, we frequently hear that Jesus performed signs, which are acts that reveal his special dedication to us and the salvation that he brings to the world,” he said. “The Lord is presented as the One who gives meaning to our lives, freeing us from evil and sin.”
Pope Leo said Christ’s healing miracles were not merely extraordinary acts but signs that the kingdom of God was near.
“By restoring sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf, Christ is doing more than merely performing miraculous deeds; he is proclaiming to all that the Kingdom of God is near,” he said.
The Gospel, he continued, shows that Christ not only restores the senses but also fills them with good things, giving food to the hungry as well as sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf.
“The account of the multiplication of the loaves shows us that the encounter with the Lord is a nourishing experience,” he said. “In the desert, that is, when we are in need, Christ is the bread of life.”
The 12 baskets of food left over after the crowd had eaten, the pope explained, signify both the universal character of God’s gift and the constancy of his providential care.
“Christ truly satisfies humanity’s hunger, our hunger for truth and life,” he said. “His gesture teaches us that nothing is discarded when it is shared.”
Pope Leo contrasted that spirit of generosity with a culture driven by accumulation and waste.
“Hoarding and waste, on the contrary, are two sides of the same evil: greed,” he said.
He described greed as a spiritual sickness that dulls the senses and makes people indifferent to the suffering of others.
“This spiritual sickness numbs the senses, which become intoxicated with wealth, to the point of making people forget those who weep from hunger and cry out from thirst,” he said.
“And so, in the face of an opulence that reeks of decay, we find the outstretched hands of those who have no nourishment, the burned homes of those who have no peace.”
Against the “deserts of war and arrogance,” the pope invited Christians to contemplate the actions of Jesus during the multiplication of the loaves: looking to heaven, blessing the bread, breaking it and giving it to the disciples to distribute.
“In this miracle of charity, we recognize the characteristic actions of Jesus, which find their culmination in the Last Supper, for it was then that the Son of God gave us his very life as our brother in humanity,” he said.
The pope concluded by encouraging Catholics to make their summer vacations an opportunity for fraternity and service.
“In Jesus’ company, even vacations can become a time of fraternal serenity, if we reach out to our neighbors in need,” he said.
This story was first published in two parts by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated, combined and adapted by EWTN News English.
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Video footage and reports indicate that the overwhelming majority of those 50,000 Moroccans storming the border were robust military-age males. This isn’t migration; it’s an invasion. It’s the latest shot of The Great Replacement.
It has all the earmarks of what’s called “pen[etration] testing in in the digital realm.
“Pope Leo XIV appeals for peace and justice amid ‘alarming’ Ceuta crisis” (and for an end to Original Sin)…
A solution:
Forcibly return the men by any means necessary.
Any battered woman or child (the very few there seem to be) could perhaps be given temporary assistance and the opportunity to assimilate
When the Vatican begins to apply reason and common sense to a problem which is not at all difficult to discern, perhaps it will begin to be regarded as having an iota of credence.
We observe an institution in the throws of delusion.
Peace and justice huh?
So open borders and government support for the invaders?
I realize it is tough to understand words that do not align with your narrative. Peace and justice means using the justice system not vigilantism. And yes, feeding and sheltering those accused of illegal entry until adjudicated. You may recognize this as the rule of law in a civilized society.
Ok, boomer. How many illegals are you feeding and housing right now?
You’re somewhat attempting humor? As a taxpayer I contribute to the society. I expect the law to apply equally to all including the bitter narcissists.
Typical boomer progressive. Lecturing others but not living up to your own principles.
I hear what you are saying Athanasius, but we often hear the same question from supporters of feticide on demand.
Human beings are a resource and a blessing. Our borders should be secured for our safety and the safety of our neighbors. Able people should carry their own weight, not expect to be subsidized by taxpayers.
But as Gerard said, in a civilized society we care for those who are truly in need. And one day if they become part of the workforce, their tax dollars may support our Medicare and Social Security.
“I realize it is tough to understand words that do not align with your narrative.”
There’s that projection again. But another example of SJW’s always lie, always project and always double down. Nobody demonstrates more difficulty (tough means resilience or resistance) with understanding than you.
It’s amusing. In the Fauci article, there’s a reference to Stockholm Syndrome, and while you apparently enjoy your ideological captivity VI, what’s insightful is that you think everybody else is captive as well. Newsflash: It was the left that came up with the “Talking Points Memo” a couple decades ago so that all the drones could sing from the same sheet. It still exists, reduced in influence and prominence, and still claims to be independent.
If this were a secular website, I’d be tempted to think your recent emergence here was the result of an digital marketing firm’s attempt to increase engagement by posting a caricature of the pseudo-religious left.
“feeding and sheltering those accused of illegal entry until adjudicated.”
No, unless the food and shelter is part of pre-trial detention. Entirely too many illegals (or is that “undocumented” in your world) never appear for the proceedings.
You are an angry person who loves attacking the messenger when your reason fails. I will add you to my prayers.
Gerard, while you’re at you you ought to pray for yourself for healing of your troubled mind.
Why wasn’t the parallel crisis on the U.S. southern border not an “alarming situation”? What does alarming mean for Pope Leo regarding Ceuta? Lost in translation is how peace and justice applies, and to whom.
It’s a test case for Vatican policy on the meaning of justice both for intrusive migrants and for a nation’s right to secure frontiers.
See horrific figures below. No wonder that the Popee talks the talk, but in his own state the Pope tolerates no illegal immigrants (See at the end of this post the harsh penalties the Vatican imposes on illegal aliens)
—SEX CRIMES AND OTHER CRIME RISE IN HIGH- IMMIGRATION WESTERN EUROPE
Figures reveal a widening divide between high immigration and high-crime Western states and low or no immigration and far lower crime rates in Central and Eastern Europe.
— New figures from Eurostat show that sexual violence offences across Europe continued to rise in 2024, with sharp differences between Western and Eastern countries likely to intensify debate over the link between crime and migration.
Police recorded 256,302 sexual violence offences in 2024, including 98,190 cases of rape. This represents a 5% increase in sexual violence overall and a 7% rise in rape compared with 2023.
Over the past decade, the trend has been sharply upward: sexual violence offences have nearly doubled since 2014, while rape cases have surged by 150%.
—A breakdown by population highlights striking regional disparities.
Nordic and Western European countries dominate the top of the list, with Sweden reporting 200.98 cases of sexual violence per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Iceland, Finland, France, and Belgium.
By contrast, several Central and Eastern European countries report significantly lower rates, including Hungary (5.10), Lithuania (5.79), and North Macedonia (7.17).
Similar patterns appear in other categories of crime. Spain, Belgium, Portugal, France, and Germany rank among the highest for robbery, burglary, and theft, while Montenegro, Slovakia, and Hungary sit at the lower end.
Drug-related offences also show similar gaps, with Sweden, France, and Belgium reporting far higher rates than countries such as Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia.
RISING CRIME LEVELS IN WESTERN EUROPE HAVE BEEN INCREASINGLY LINKED TO INCREASED MIGRATION. REPORTS FROM COUNTRIES SUCH AS SPAIN, ITALY, FRANCE, AND GERMANY HAVE INDICATED THAT FOREIGN NATIONALS ARE OVERREPRESENTED AMONG SUSPECTS IN CERTAIN CATEGORIES OF VIOLENT CRIME.
IN FRANCE, NON-EUROPEAN FOREIGNERS MAKE UP 5.7% OF THE FRENCH POPULATION, BUT ACCOUNT FOR 14% OF HOMICIDES AND UP TO 30% OF VEHICLE THEFTS.
IN SEVERAL GERMAN STATES, INCLUDING BAVARIA, BERLIN, AND BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG, ROUGHLY HALF OF ALL SUSPECTS IN VIOLENT CRIMES ARE NON-GERMAN NATIONALS.
AS WE REPORTED EARLIER, REPORTS OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE HAVE INCREASED ALONGSIDE RISING IMMIGRATION LEVELS IN COUNTRIES SUCH AS SPAIN, ITALY, FRANCE, BELGIUM, AND GERMANY.
https://europeanconservative.com/articles/news/sex-crime-rises-across-europe-as-western-nations-top-the-list/
The crimes committed by criminals of foreign origin in Western Europe are actually under reported. The reason is that courts grant citizenship to illegal immigrants if they are born in the country. The judges are harming the native populations.
–The same is happening in the U.S. The court system grants U.S. citizenship to anyone born in the U.S., which includes thousands and thousands of anchor babies and birth tourism babies. The courts use the 14th amendment to justify this. But the amendment’s intention was to protect the rights of blacks freed after the Civil War. It was not intended to apply to foreigners who are born here from foreign parents and birth tourism and anchor pregnancies.
—Abdul Ballout, the 21-year-old Muslim man who ploughed a vehicle into a Pride Parade in Berlin on July 23, 2026, killing one and injuring 29 was born in Germany of Lebanese parents so he is reported as German criminal, not as an immigrant criminal.
—He had recently “graduated” from a de-radicalization program of the German government.
See
https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16006407/Lebanese-German-ISIS-terrorist-ploughed-Pride-parade-killed.html
—No wonder the Pope talks the talk but in his own state he has illegal aliens severely punished. See this
Vatican Promises Stiff Penalties for Illegal Aliens Crossing its Border
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2025/01/16/vatican-promises-stiff-penalties-for-illegal-aliens-crossing-its-border/
The Supreme Court has ruled against your contention regarding the 14th amendment.
Pray harder for yourself, Gerard. Meanwhile, we’ll pray for you.
In Europe, it’s a dirty, little secret (that governments try to hide), that many young Muslim men have a problem behaving themselves sexually. They are overly aggressive with women
And do not respect women. They regard rape as not a big deal. We don’t want them.
You are an angry person who loves attacking the messenger when your emotion fails-and it’s your sole Modus operandi.
“bitter narcissists.” (sic)
Have you paused to consider you need our prayers more than we need yours?
Do you pray with gratitude that you are not like those?