Nonviolence
is essential to transform violence and injustice
17 May 2026
On Friday, May 15, a group of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese speaking religious sisters and brothers from Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (UISG-USG) gathered at our General House to reflect on “Nonviolence.” Guided by Nicolás Paz (Pax Christi International), we deepened our commitment to the nonviolence of the Gospel.
We discovered that peace already exists and seeks to dwell within us. It has the gentle power to broaden understanding, resist evil, and overcome it. It is eternal: while evil is told “enough,” peace is whispered “forever.”
The speaker invited us to look at the reality of our conflicts, clearly distinguishing between conflict itself and violence, which is only one way of reacting. As Pope Francis reminds us, nonviolence is a universal ethic that goes beyond Christians; it is a spirituality, a way of life, a method of transformation, and a universal ethic. In daily life, we have the choice in our hands of how we resolve conflicts: through violence or through nonviolence. Everything begins in the heart, with small everyday gestures — a thank you, an apology, a please — which must then be institutionalized and supported with tools for true communal change.