War never brings relief to human lives, Pope Francis emphasized in a pontifical message to participants gathered at an international conference focused on peacemaking held at Pontifical Lateran University in Rome.

Rather than resolving conflicts, war brings “destruction, loss of humanity, intolerance, to the point of denying the possibility of looking to tomorrow with renewed confidence,” the pope stated.

The conference took place on May 11-12, one month following the 60th anniversary of Pope John XXIII’s encyclical