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On Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026, Pope Leo XIV preached a homily that has been getting a great deal of attention for his claim that “Jesus, King of Peace,” actually “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: ‘Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood’” (Is 1:15).
The pope added that “While he was burdened with our sufferings and pierced for our sins, Jesus ‘did not open his mouth, like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent’ (Is 53:7). He did not arm himself, or defend himself, or fight any war. He revealed the gentle face of God, who always rejects violence. Rather than saving himself, he allowed himself to be nailed to the cross, embracing every cross borne in every time and place throughout human history.”
The pontiff was clearly presenting these reflections as an example for us to follow, and as a warning: if we wage war or approve of war, apparently almighty God will be angry with us, and not hear our prayers. If we take up arms even in order to defend ourselves, or our country, or our civilization, that also will earn us God’s wrath. What we should instead do is allow ourselves to be nailed to the cross, presumably in anticipation of the resurrection, although the pope doesn’t mention that.
One of the many striking aspects of this homily is that it is completely at variance with the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as other Churches, throughout the ages. Christian authorities have never forbidden self-defense, and have regarded defense of one’s family and one’s nation as a noble duty rather than a crime so heinous that it will deafen God Himself. Aside from a handful of tiny sects, Christianity in all of its various manifestations has never been unilaterally pacifist. It has never counseled that one must allow oneself or one’s family or neighbors to be plundered, or raped, or even killed while standing by passively.
To be sure, no Christian tradition has anything resembling Islam’s doctrines of warfare, conquest and subjugation of unbelievers, but defensive warfare, undertaken with strict regard for the welfare of civilians and never for the sake of gaining territory or riches, has never been forbidden. In a wide variety of circumstances, popes throughout history have encouraged it. One of Leo’s predecessors, Pope Julius II, even earned the sobriquet “The Warrior Pope” for participating in it.
So Pope Leo is, without explanation or clarification, at variance with his own Church’s long tradition. And the context of his remarks makes matters even worse. The pope was clearly intending his homily as a rebuke of the U.S. and Israel, in their actions against the Islamic Republic of Iran. About the years of suffering of the Iranian people under the boot of the Islamic regime, he has had nothing to say. Nor has he offered any alternative remedies for those Iranian people as to how they can ultimately free themselves from the tyranny of the Islamic Republic.
What would the pope say if Islamic jihadis entered Vatican City and demanded that he resign and turn over Saint Peter’s to become a mosque? Given the now-accelerating Islamization of Europe, this is not an empty hypothetical or a cheap rhetorical trick. Islamic jihadis besieged Rome centuries ago, and a supposed prophecy of Islam’s prophet Muhammad promises that Muslims will eventually conquer it. If they get close to doing so during the papacy of Leo XIV, will he turn over the Vatican to them, watch it being transformed into a mosque, and abdicate the papal throne?
Maybe he will. He may believe that to do so would be following the way of the cross, and of the God who emptied Himself for the salvation of mankind. Maybe he thinks that such an action would be a supreme act of charity. But would it be, really? Would consigning millions of Christians to the precarious existence of dhimmitude, in which their lives would be forfeit at the word of a Muslim and they would have to endure all manner of discrimination and harassment, really be an act of charity?
There was a reason why the Fathers of the Church deemed self-defense acceptable and even righteous in some circumstances. The pope should acquaint himself with those reasons.
Photo Credit: Creative Commons.
