Pope Leo decries leaders who invoke Jesus to ‘justify war’

Pope Leo decries leaders who invoke Jesus to ‘justify war’

What happenedPope Leo XIV on Sunday began his first Holy Week as pope by criticizing leaders who invoke Jesus to “justify war.” Christians throughout the Middle East are “suffering the consequences of an atrocious conflict,” including not being able to “live fully the rites of these holy days,” he said at a Palm Sunday Mass at the Vatican. Hours earlier, Israeli police had blocked the top Catholic leader in Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizza…

Pope: God doesn’t listen to those who use religion to justify war

ROME  — Pope Leo XIV said Sunday that God doesn’t listen to the prayers of those who make war or cite God to justify their violence, as he prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square. With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran entering its second month and Russia’s ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo dedicated his Palm Sunday homily to his insistence that God is the “king of peace” who rejects violence…