People who manufacture weapons or invest in weapons industries are hypocrites if they call themselves Christian, Pope Francis said on Sunday. Francis issued his toughest condemnation to date of the weapons industry at a rally of thousands of young people at the end of the first day of his trip to the Italian city of Turin, Reuters reported.
"If you trust only men you have lost," he told the young people in a long, rambling talk about war, trust and politics after putting aside his prepared address. "It makes me think of ... people, managers, businessmen who call themselves Christian and they manufacture weapons. That leads to a bit a distrust, doesn't it?"
He also criticized those who invest in weapons industries, saying "duplicity is the currency of today ... they say one thing and do another." Discussing World War I, he spoke of "the great tragedy of Armenia" but did not use the word "genocide."
Francis sparked a diplomatic row in April calling the killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians 100 years ago "the first genocide of the 20th century," prompting Turkey to recall its ambassador to the Vatican.
The pontiff, an Argentinean whose father and grandfather were born in the Turin area, wrapped up his two-day visit to the region with a private lunch with his Italian relatives.
