CARTAGENA, Colombia – Pope Francis said he had no magic words or special recipes for Colombians seeking peace, but rather he wanted to listen to them, learn from them and travel a bit of the road with them.

BOGOTA, Colombia - Consolidating peace in Colombia will mean overcoming "the darkness" of inequality and a lack of respect for human life, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN CITY - Quoting celebrated Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Pope Francis told the country's bishops he knows "it is easier to begin a war than to end one" and that, to succeed, Colombia needs bishops who are pastors, not politicians.

BOGOTA, Colombia - As Colombia strives to build a lasting peace, the country's elders need the encouragement and insistence of young people, who believe with all their hearts that forgiveness is possible and grudges don't have to last for decades, Pope Francis said.

VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia (CNS) -- People in need in this city set in the heart of Colombia's cattle country line up outside the Pope Francis food bank, a warehouse built with a donation from the pontiff.

BOGOTA, Colombia – Lilia Yaya recalls being unwelcome in the Catholic Church. Her father, a communist political organizer and labor leader, was excommunicated from the church for his views and activism. Yaya was singled out as a troublemaker in her Catholic school for her father's political activities.

VATICAN CITY – Colombia's transition to a just and lasting peace requires a commitment on behalf of all the nation's people to taking the first step toward reconciliation, Pope Francis said in a video message.