The Pope has warned that people’s habit of using their smartphone during mealtimes could be the first step societies take on the path to war.
Speaking at Roma Tre University in Italy, Pope Francis said the end of proper face-to-face conversations could be catastrophic. He urged younger generations to switch off their phones during family meals, otherwise it could have dire consequences for society.
He told his audience: “When we’re at the table, when we are speaking to others on our telephones, it’s the start of war because there is no dialogue.”
He also spoke of the decline of basic courtesies and good manners, observing that many young people no longer say “Good morning” to each but instead deliver an “anonymous ‘ciao ciao’”.
He added that it appeared to him to be normal these days for people to “insult” strangers. He said: “We need to lower the tone a bit, speak less and listen more” adding that “dialogue which brings hearts closer together” is “a medicine against violence”.
Pope Francis also said that in his opinion cardinals do not always choose “the most intelligent” person to be pontiff. He said the man picked as pontiff “perhaps isn’t the most intelligent, the shrewdest, the quickest to do what has to be done”.
But he said the choice “is the one who God wants for that moment for the church”.
Francis explained while cardinals discuss the strong points of various candidates, “above all they pray”.
