Pax Christi USA condemns military strikes on Iran

Source: Pax Christi USA

Pax Christi USA, the national Catholic peace movement, condemns the horrific bombing of Iran by the US and Israel, and we urge our nation's leaders to stop the violence.

As we recall the words from the daily readings of February 28, when the gospel reminds us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48), our hearts break for the loss of life and the extraordinary damage being inflicted not only on the people of Iran but also communities throughout the region who are affected by retaliatory strikes.

Since our movement's founding in Europe at the end of World War II by Catholics who had suffered the terror and trauma of war, Pax Christi has opposed war and all preparations for war. We do not endorse warmaking as a solution for any political or social dispute, but we demand that Congress exercise its responsibility and pass a War Powers Act immediately in order to block this immoral and unconstitutional action.

"It is critical that members of Congress re-claim their role and provide some restraint on a president who is completely unaccountable for his disastrous decisions," said Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., bishop president of Pax Christi USA. "In this Lenten season, may we repent of our sins of violence."

"This unauthorized act of aggression is a perpetuation of the administration's devaluation of human life," said Pax Christi USA Executive Director Charlene Howard. "It is paramount that if true and lasting peace is to be achieved, that nonviolent interventions be prioritized in order to safeguard the lives of Iranian women, children and men, and all residents of the region."

We also urge our Catholic bishops to use their moral authority to demand our country's leaders to hold the Trump administration accountable for its actions. As Cardinals Blase Cupich, Robert McElroy, and Joseph Tobin wrote in January 2026, "The balancing of national interest with the common good is being framed within starkly polarized terms. Our country's moral role in confronting evil around the world, sustaining the right to life and human dignity, and supporting religious liberty are all under examination. And the building of just and sustainable peace, so crucial to humanity's well-being now and in the future, is being reduced to partisan categories that encourage polarization and destructive policies."

These attacks on Iran by the US and Israel are catastrophic - they will profoundly undermine any attempt at diplomacy and peacebuilding. As Pope Leo XIV said during his Angelus address today "Stability and peace are not achieved through mutual threats, nor through the use of weapons, which sow destruction, suffering, and death, but only through reasonable, sincere, and responsible dialogue."

We pray for an end to the violence, a cessation of the bombing, and for an embrace of nonviolent solutions that affirm the autonomy and human rights of the people of Iran and the Middle East.