The 55th World Peace Day was celebrated yesterday. Pope Saint Paul VI instituted the World Peace Day, which is celebrated on January 1, the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. It has become the custom of the Holy Father to provide a message for this occasion that is sent to foreign ministers around the world. In the message for this year Pope Francis states that he wants to promote a dialogue between generations, education, and work because there are tools for building lasting peace. Pope Francis would like to see a new alliance between the young and the elderly to address the problems of isolation and self-absorption heightened by the corona virus pandemic. Pope Francis notes that the wisdom and experience of the elderly is needed by young people. At the same time the young can provide support, affection, creativity, and their dynamism to our senior citizens. He would also like to see a “hearty politics” become the driving force of a new dialog between generations. Pope Francis is sad to see the tendency to see education and training considered as expenditures instead of as investments because they should be the primary means of promoting integral human development. Indeed, investment in education could help young people take their rightful place in the labor market and build a more habitable and beautiful world through their work. In addition to greater investment in education Pope Francis would like to see the promotion of a “culture of care.” This could become a common language that could break down barriers and build bridges. Pope Francis acknowledged that COVID-19 has made it more difficult for young people to find stable employment. On this point he noted that “Millions of economic and productive activities have failed; short-term workers are increasingly vulnerable: many of those who provide essential services have an even lower public and political profile, and in many cases, distance learning has led to a deficit in learning and delays in completing programs of study.” Pope Francis is also troubled by the bleak prospects faced by young people entering the job market and recently unemployed adults and the exposure of migrant workers to various forms of slavery with no system of welfare to protect them. The Holy Father observed that only one in three people working today “enjoys a system of social protection, or benefits from it only in limited ways,” while violence and organized crime are on the rise in many places. “The only answer to this is an expansion of dignified employment opportunities,” Pope Francis stated. He believes that labor is the foundation on which to build justice and solidarity in every community. Pope Francis believes that the freedom of initiatives of an entrepreneurial nature needs to be ensured and supported. But at the same time, efforts need to be made to encourage a renewed sense of social responsibility so that profit will not be the sole criterion that guides these entrepreneurial initiatives. He hopes that all Catholic workers and entrepreneurs to strive for “a fair balance between economic freedom and social justice,” drawing on the “sure guidelines” found in the social doctrine of the Church. The Pope finished his message in the following manner, “To government leaders and to all those charged with political and social responsibilities, to priests and pastoral workers, and to all men and women of goodwill, I make this appeal: let us walk together with courage and creativity on the path of intergenerational dialogue, education, and work.” Until next week, Fr. John