Hate Speech Condemned by Vatican as Threat to Human Dignity and Source of Violence and Division Among Peoples
At the Global Conference on Promoting Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue and Tolerance in Countering Hate Speech, Archbishop Christophe Z. El Kassis, the Apostolic Nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, reaffirmed the moral imperative to reject every form of intolerance, discrimination, and hate speech. He described them as “wounds [to] the human family [which] undermines the conditions for peaceful coexistence.”
The Nuncio cited Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica humanitas, reminding those present that the “first contribution we can make toward a more humane civilization is to be mindful of our words.” Because of the power of words, “by disarming words, the first steps are taken to weave the fabric of social peace and foster a culture of dialogue, tolerance, and respect for differences.”
He also stressed that “peace cannot be woven by words alone. True tolerance is … that active recognition of the equal dignity or every person and the freedom of conscience that belongs to each. It requires the patient effort of dialogue, mutual understanding, and the rejection of stereotypes.”
The Archbishop was appointed the new permanent observer of the Holy See to the U.N. in July 2026. These remarks on Sept. 17 were his first address to the international body.
