Pope Leo XIV tells Assisi peace meeting: “No holy war; only peace is holy”

In a video message to the international peace meeting in Assisi, Pope Leo XIV said war can never be waged in God’s name and called for rejecting religious justifications for wars.

Pope Leo XIV said, “There is no such thing as a holy war; only peace is holy,” in a video message he sent on October 27 to participants in the international “Spirit of Assisi” meeting organized by the Community of Sant’Egidio in the Italian city.

The pope stressed that “war can never be waged in God’s name,” citing the principle that “fighting in the name of religion means attacking religion itself.” He called for “rejecting the religious justification of war” as part of the spirit of Assisi.

النافذة الوردية في واجهة كاتدرائية القديس فرنسيس بأسيزي

“We must rebuild peace everywhere, not prepare for more wars,” he added, expressing hope that “the language of arrogance will give way to the language of peace, negotiation and understanding.”

The three-day meeting was held under the theme “A Peace Without Weapons and Disarmament,” coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the World Day of Prayer for Peace, which Pope John Paul II called for in Assisi on October 27, 1986.