The Franciscan Spirituality Center of Valencia hosted the conference “Cries for Peace” on May 4, presented by Capuchin Tertiary Sister Amparo Alejos, in a gathering that brought together numerous attendees concerned about today’s challenges to coexistence and peace in the world.
The session was introduced by Brother José Luis Coll, guardian of the Convent of Our Lady of the Angels, who highlighted the urgency and relevance of the topic: “We live in times when cries of war abound while dialogue seems to weaken, despite technological and social progress.”
During her presentation, Sister Amparo Alejos reflected on the true meaning of peace from a biblical, ecclesial, and human perspective, revisiting different moments of the Church’s Magisterium, from Pius XII to the most recent teachings on the culture of encounter and reconciliation.
With extensive experience accompanying and protecting vulnerable minors, Alejos also shared her personal experience in contexts marked by suffering and human fragility, emphasizing how peace must be built through everyday gestures, attentive listening, and the defense of each person’s dignity.
The conference was accompanied by the projected image of a striking representation of the Virgin Mary raising her arm in rejection of war, a work promoted by Pope Benedict XV after the First World War and placed in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome as a symbol of the universal cry for peace.
Throughout the talk, Sister Amparo insisted that peace cannot be reduced merely to the absence of conflict, but rather involves learning to live together through respect, acceptance of differences, and the ability to listen to others. “Peace begins in the way we speak, look at one another, and relate to each other,” she recalled, inviting attendees to build more humane and reconciled relationships.
In the final part of the meeting, she recalled the words of Pope Leo XIV on the occasion of the World Day of Peace, emphasizing the importance of communication that heals, an attitude that rejects hatred and destructive judgment, and a firm commitment to forgiveness and hope.
The conference concluded in an atmosphere of silence and prayer for peace, followed by prolonged applause from the attendees, who expressed their gratitude for the depth and closeness of a reflection especially meaningful in the current context.
Photograph: OFMINMACULADA.ORG