Pope Leo XIV repeats his predecessors' appeals for peace

Russian drone and missile strike in Kyiv

Source: Vatican Media

At the end of his General Audience today, with pilgrims in St Peter's Square, Pope Leo XIV made a heartfelt appeal for peace, quoting his predecessors, Pope Francis and Pope Pius XII.

"The heart of the Church is rent asunder, by the cries rising up from places of war," especially Ukraine, Iran, Israel, and Gaza, Pope Leo said. "We must never become accustomed to war" but instead "reject as a temptation the allure of powerful and sophisticated weapons."

He warned that the use of "scientific weapons of all kinds" in modern warfare risks "leading combatants to a barbarism far greater than that of times past."

Appealing directly to world leaders, Pope Leo echoed his predecessor, Pope Francis, who had so often declared: "War is always a defeat!"

He also recalled the words of Pope Pius XII, who led the Church during the Second World War. In 1939, Pius XII issued his famous appeal by radio as the world stood on the brink of the Second World War. Citing the historic radio message delivered by Pope Pius XII on 24 August 1939, Pope Leo invoked the same phrase with which his predecessor sought to avert global conflict:

"Nothing is lost with peace. All may be lost with war."

Pius XII had been elected just months earlier, following the death of Pius XI. His message, broadcast from Castel Gandolfo at 7pm that day, came after news reached the Vatican of the signing of the Nazi-Soviet Pact, a development that made war seem inevitable.

"It is by the force of reason, not the force of arms, that justice makes its way," Pope Pius XII proclaimed. "Empires not founded on justice are not blessed by God. Politics divorced from morality betrays those who promote it."

He added, with urgency: "The danger is imminent, but there is still time. Nothing is lost with peace. All may be lost with war. Let men return to mutual understanding. Let them resume negotiations. By negotiating with goodwill and respect for each other's rights, they will find that sincere and effective agreements are always possible-and can lead to honourable success."

Despite the Pope's impassioned plea, his voice went unheard. On 1 September 1939, German troops invaded Poland, triggering the Second World War.