Christians must avoid using their faith to label those who are different — often the poor — as enemies to be avoided and rejected, Pope Leo XIV said.

With the start of the first phase of a peace deal between Israel and Gaza, Pope Leo XIV prayed for a just and lasting peace that respects all people.

The words of “Dilexi Te” (“I Have Loved You”) — the apostolic exhortation on love for the poor released by the Vatican Oct. 9 — come from the pen of two pontiffs, Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV.

Religious freedom is “a cornerstone of any just society” and contributes to building peace, Pope Leo XIV said.

Journalists can help stop those who seek to create divisions through “the ancient art of lying” and ruling by dividing, Pope Leo XIV said.

Consecrated men and women can wake up the world, being small beacons of light pointing the way to God’s plan of peace and salvation for humanity, Pope Leo XIV said.

Pope Leo XIV sent a letter commending the work of Catholic Charities USA, the domestic charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the U.S., to mark its 115th annual gathering Oct. 6-9 in San Juan.

Pope Leo XIV’s first apostolic exhortation “Dilexi Te” (“I have loved you”), promulgated Oct. 9, 2025 — the feast day of St. John Henry Newman — explores love and charity for the poor.

Greeting a pilgrimage of labor union leaders from Chicago, Pope Leo XIV thanked them for helping “to create a society where all can flourish.”

Consecrated men and women, who abandon themselves “like children into the arms of the Father,” spread “the ‘fresh air’ of authentic love throughout the world,” he said in his homily during Mass in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 9, marking the Jubilee of Consecrated Life.