In a powerful statement, Pope Leo XIV on Saturday condemned the “illusion of omnipotence” that is driving the conflict between the U.S. and Israel against Iran, urging world leaders to halt hostilities and pursue peace negotiations.
Pope Leo led an evening prayer service at St. Peter’s Basilica coinciding with the commencement of direct talks between the United States and Iran in Pakistan, amidst a tentative ceasefire.
As the first pontiff from the United States, Leo refrained from directly naming the United States or President Donald Trump during the service, which had been scheduled before the negotiation announcement. Nonetheless, his pointed remarks seemed aimed at Trump and other U.S. leaders who have touted U.S. military dominance and justified the conflict through religious rhetoric.
“No more worship of self and wealth!” Leo declared. “No more power displays! No more war!”
Present in the basilica was the Archbishop of Tehran, Belgian Cardinal Dominique Joseph Mathieu. Representing the U.S., Deputy Chief of Mission Laura Hochla attended, as confirmed by the U.S. Embassy.
Initially, during the early stages of the conflict, Leo, a native of Chicago, was hesitant to openly criticize the violence, opting for restrained calls for peace and dialogue. However, beginning on Palm Sunday, he intensified his criticism, and this week, he denounced President Trump’s threat to obliterate Iranian culture as “utterly unacceptable,” advocating for dialogue to be the solution.
On Saturday, Leo called for all people of good will to pray for peace and demand an end to war from their political leaders. The evening vigil in Rome, which featured Scripture readings and meditative recitation of the Rosary prayers, was taking place as simultaneous local prayer services were being held in the U.S. and beyond.
Praying for peace, Leo said, was a way to “break the demonic cycle of evil” to build instead the Kingdom of God where there are no swords, drones or “unjust profit.”
“It is here that we find a bulwark against that delusion of omnipotence that surrounds us and is becoming increasingly unpredictable and aggressive,” he said. “Even the holy Name of God, the God of life, is being dragged into discourses of death.”
Leaders have used religion to justify their actions in the war. U.S. officials and especially Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have invoked their Christian faith to cast the U.S. as a Christian nation trying to vanquish its foes.
Leo has said God doesn’t bless any war, and certainly not those who drop bombs.
Leo presided over the service sitting off to the side of the altar on a white throne, wearing his formal red cape and liturgical stole and praying with a Rosary in his hands. Many of the priests and nuns in the pews fingered Rosary beads as the “Our Father” and “Hail Mary” prayers were recited.
The Vatican is particularly concerned about the spillover of Israel’s war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, given the plight of Christian communities in the south.
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