The winds of war continue to blow, with numerous detainees still in the hands of Hamas and torture occurring in various regions of the world, even with weapons stationed. This issue is central to Pope Francis' meditation at the conclusion of his Wednesday General Audience. Ukraine and the Holy Land are the two major fronts in the spotlight. The Holy Father concentrates on them, but as always, his vision is broader: "Let us think of the prisoners of war: that the Lord moves the will to free them all," he adds. Then reads, "Those who have been tormented come to mind. The act of subjecting detainees to torture is abhorrent and inhumane. Consider how many tortures violate a person's dignity, as well as how many people have been tortured. May God aid and bless everyone". The more purely religious meditation centers on the fourth and last cardinal virtue, temperance. Pope Francis broadens the field, noting that it does not belong to Christians alone, and takes the thought back to ancient Greece, focusing on the question: "Why do we all seek happiness, but so few achieve it?". The key, as the Pontiff tells out, is precisely temperance. To explain, it moves from the Greek word enkráteia, or "power over oneself," to Manzoni, emphasizing how this signifies "the ability to self-rule, the art of not being overwhelmed by rebellious passions, of putting order in the 'jumble of the human heart'."
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