During his annual address on Monday, the pope took time to discuss cancel culture, saying that it is a kind of "one-track thinking" that risks silencing the voices of important people.
Pope Francis addressed 183 countries in his yearly speech, accredited to the Holy See, and shared that cancel culture is spreading but shouldn't be practiced.
"Cancel culture is invading many circles and public institutions," the pope said. "As a result, agendas are increasingly dictated by a mindset that rejects the natural foundations of humanity and the cultural roots that constitute the identity of many people."
Continuing about the ideology, the pope shared that "under the guise of defending diversity, it ends up canceling all sense of identity."
Pope Francis also said that cancel culture can silence those who "defend a respectful and balanced understanding of various sensibilities."
The pope jumped to other topics sharing that he thinks governments should continue their efforts to get citizens vaccinated.
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He called out the "baseless information or poorly documented facts" about COVID-19 vaccines.
"Vaccines are not a magical means of healing," the pope said. "Yet surely they represent, in addition to other treatments that need to be developed, the most reasonable solution for the prevention of the disease."
The pope said that counties with high vaccination rates have had a reduction in severe cases, adding that it is "important to continue the effort to immunize the general population."
He also slammed schools that have closed and are using digital learning, stressing the importance of in-person education for students.
"In making this point, I in no way intend to deny the usefulness of technology and its products, which make it possible for us to connect with one another easily and quickly," the pope said. "But I do appeal urgently that we be watchful lest these instruments substitute for true human relationships."
