Pope Leo XIV on Sunday rejected claims that God justifies war , as he prayed especially for Christians within the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass before tens of 1000’s of individuals 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 and comforts those that are oppressed.
“Brothers and sisters, that is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom nobody can use to justify war,” Leo said. “He doesn’t hearken to the prayers of those that wage war, but rejects them.”
Leaders on all sides of the Iran war have used religion to justify their actions. U.S. officials, especially Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, have invoked their Christian faith to solid the war as a Christian nation attempting to vanquish its foes with military might.
Russia’s Orthodox Church, too, has justified Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a “holy war” against a Western world it considers has fallen into evil.
Palm Sunday marks Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem within the time leading as much as his crucifixion, which Christians observe on Good Friday, and resurrection on Easter Sunday.
In a special blessing at the top of Mass, Leo said he was praying especially for Christians within the Middle East who’re “suffering the implications of an atrocious conflict. In lots of cases, they can not live fully the rites of those holy days.”
Earlier Sunday, the Latin Patriarchate said Jerusalem police prevented the Catholic Church’s top leadership from entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was the primary time in centuries church leaders were prevented from celebrating Palm Sunday on the place where Christians imagine Jesus was crucified, the Patriarchate said.
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Israeli police said the Catholic leaders’ request for access to the church had been denied, since all holy sites within the Old City of Jerusalem were closed to worshippers for security reasons. A police statement said freedom of worship would proceed to be upheld “subject to essential restrictions.”
Leo said that in Holy Week, Christians cannot forget how many individuals all over the world are suffering as Christ did. “Their trials appeal to the conscience of all. Allow us to raise our prayers to the Prince of Peace in order that he may support people wounded by war and open concrete paths of reconciliation and peace,” Leo said.
A Holy Week that recalls Pope Francis’ suffering
For many individuals on the Vatican, the beginning of Holy Week this 12 months brings back memories of the ultimate suffering days of Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday.
When Holy Week opened last 12 months, Francis was still recovering on the Vatican after a five-week hospital stay for double pneumonia. He had delegated the liturgical celebrations to others, but rallied on Easter Sunday to greet the faithful from the loggia of St. Peter’s Square. Most poignantly, he then made what became his final popemobile loop across the piazza.
Francis died the next morning after suffering a stroke. His nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, later told Vatican Media that Francis had told him: “Thanks for bringing me back to the square” for the ultimate salute.
Leo is on account of preside over this week’s liturgical appointments and is returning to tradition with the Holy Thursday foot-washing ceremony that commemorates Jesus’ Last Supper along with his disciples.
During his 12-year pontificate, Francis famously celebrated the Holy Thursday ritual by traveling to Rome-area prisons and refugee centers to scrub the feet of individuals most on society’s margins. His aim was to drive home the ritual’s message of service and humility, and he would continuously muse during his Holy Thursday homilies “Why them and never me?”
Francis’ gesture had been praised as a tangible evidence of his belief that the church must go to the peripheries to seek out those most in need of God’s love and mercy. But some critics bristled on the annual outings, especially since Francis would also wash the feet of Muslims and folks of other faiths.
Leo restores Holy Week foot-washing tradition
Leo, history’s first U.S.-born pope, is returning the Holy Thursday foot-washing tradition to the basilica of St. John Lateran, where popes performed it for a long time. The Vatican hasn’t yet said who will participate, though Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II normally washed the feet of 12 priests.
On Friday, Leo is on account of preside over the Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum commemorating Christ’s Passion and crucifixion. Saturday brings the late night Easter Vigil, during which Leo will baptize recent Catholics, followed a couple of hours later by Easter Sunday when Christians commemorate the resurrection of Jesus.
Leo will rejoice Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square after which deliver his Easter blessing from the loggia of the basilica.
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