Pope Francis on spoke against "an industry of destruction'' practiced by mankind as he marked All Saints Day with a mass at Rome's main cemetery, the Verano.
Large crowds had gathered for the solemn outdoor event among tombstones.
Francis wove his homily around thoughts he said had come to his mind earlier in the afternoon. Addressing the crowd with few pre-written notes, the pope said humans were "capable of destroying the earth''.
"Man takes possession of everything, believes he is god, believes he is the king. And wars, the wars that continue raging, not exactly helping to sow the seed of life but to destroy. It is an industry of destruction,'' he said.
The pope said his thoughts were with refugees who were bound to suffer as temperatures were dropping at the approach of winter. But he added that people everywhere in the world were suffering.
"I tell you, it seems like these people, these children who are hungry and sick, it seems they don't count, that they are another species and not human,'' he said.
"And this multitude of people is in front of God and asks: please, salvation; please, peace; please, bread; please, jobs; please, children and grandparents; please, youth with dignity and ability to work,'' he added.
All Saints' Day, coupled with All Souls' Day on November 2, pays homage to the Christian saints and the souls of the dead.
