Pope urges peace, warns against escalation in Middle East conflict

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- As conflict in the Middle East escalated with Israeli airstrikes on nuclear sites in Iran and retaliatory drone attacks on Israel, Pope Leo XIV appealed for restraint and renewed the church's calls for nuclear disarmament and peaceful dialogue.

Pope Leo XIV addresses pilgrims in Rome for the Holy Year 2025 during an audience in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican June 14, 2025. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

Speaking to pilgrims at the end of a special Jubilee audience June 14, the pope expressed deep concern over the "seriously deteriorating" situation in the Middle East, warning of the consequences of further escalation. "I want to strongly renew an appeal to responsibility and reason," he said.

The pope emphasized that the pursuit of a safer world "free from the nuclear threat" must be rooted in "respectful encounter and sincere dialogue," laying the foundations for lasting peace "based on justice, fraternity, and the common good."

"No one should ever threaten the existence of another," he said. "It is the duty of all nations to support the cause of peace, taking paths of reconciliation and promoting solutions that ensure security and dignity for all."

The pope's comments came a day after Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned of stronger responses to the air strikes, fueling fears of wider conflict.

Bishop Zaidan Urges Ardent Prayers for Peace in the Middle East

WASHINGTON – “We urge the United States and the broader international community to exert every effort to renew a multilateral diplomatic engagement for the attainment of a durable peace between Israel and Iran,” said Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on International Justice and Peace.  

As tension and hostilities between Israel and Iran increase, he urged the U.S government to continue exerting its influence in favor of restraint and dialogue, saying: 

“We urge the United States and the broader international community to exert every effort to renew a multilateral diplomatic engagement for the attainment of a durable peace between Israel and Iran. The further proliferation of nuclear weapons in the Middle East, as well as this escalation of violence, imperils the fragile stability remaining in the region. 

“In the midst of this escalation, Pope Leo XIV has reminded us that ‘It is the duty of all countries to support the cause of peace by initiating paths of reconciliation and promoting solutions that guarantee security and dignity for all.’ I join with Cardinal Dominique Joseph Mathieu, Archbishop of Tehran-Ispahan of the Latins, in his recent exhortation when he said, ‘We pray that peace through dialogue based on a consensus will prevail. May the Holy Spirit guide this process.’ In that same spirit, I call on Catholics and all men and women of goodwill in the United States and around the world to ardently pray for an end to hostilities in the Middle East. May the Prince of Peace move the hearts and illumine the minds of all for the attainment of peace in the region.”  

14 things to know about Pope Leo XIV — the first U.S.-born pope

by CNA Staff

On May 8, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected Pope Leo XIV by the College of Cardinals as the 266th successor of St. Peter, making him the 267th pope and the first from the United States.  

Here are 14 things to know about Pope Leo XIV:

  1. Robert Francis Prevost was born on Sept. 14, 1955, in Chicago to Louis Marius Prevost, of French and Italian descent, and Mildred Martínez, of Spanish descent. He has two brothers, Louis Martín and John Joseph. 

  2. His father was a World War II Navy veteran and school superintendent; his mother was a librarian who was very involved in parish life.

  3. The new pope speaks multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese.

  4. He earned a bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Villanova University in 1977 before pursuing his religious vocation.

  5. He completed his secondary studies at the minor seminary of the Augustinians in 1973 in Michigan. In 1977, he became a member of the Order of St. Augustine and took his solemn vows in 1981. 

  6. He completed a master of divinity degree at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and earned a licentiate and doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He went on to teach canon law in seminaries during his time in Peru.  

  7. He was ordained a priest on June 19, 1982, by Archbishop Jean Jadot in Rome.

  8. He served extensively in Peru from 1985 to 1998, working as a parish pastor, seminary teacher, and diocesan official. He was also part of the leadership of Caritas Peru, the Church’s charitable organization.

  9. After being elected the head of the Augustinian Province of Chicago, he returned to the U.S. in 1999. He was elected prior general of the Augustinians in 2001 and then reelected in 2007, serving as head of the order until 2013.

  10. Pope Francis appointed him apostolic administrator and then bishop of the Diocese of Chiclayo, Peru, in 2014 and 2015 respectively, and received episcopal consecration on Dec. 12, 2014, at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Chiclayo.

  11. He was made a cardinal by Pope Francis on Sept. 30, 2023. 

  12. While serving the Church in Peru, Francis made him a member of the Dicastery for the Clergy in 2019 and then a member of the Dicastery for Bishops in 2020. In 2023, Francis made him prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. 

  13. His episcopal motto — which is a bishop’s personal motto — is “In illo uno unum,” which means “In the one Christ we are one,” reflecting his commitment to unity.

  14. Prior to becoming pope, he had an active X account — the first to have his own social media account before becoming pope.

U.S. bishops urge Congress to stop funding abortion and ‘gender transition’ services

Washington, D.C. - The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recently sent a letter to federal senators and representatives urging them to defund Planned Parenthood and stop taxpayer money from funding services such as abortions and transgender procedures that “gravely violate human dignity.”

Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, Bishop Robert Barron and Toledo, Ohio, Bishop Daniel Thomas, the chairmen of the USCCB’s marriage and pro-life committees, respectively, wrote the letter Thursday, March 27, 2025, to “affirm our support for stopping taxpayer funding of the abortion and ‘gender transition’ industries.”

The letter was sent following the announcement that the Trump administration plans to freeze millions of taxpayer dollars from subsidizing abortion services via the federal Title X program.

The bishops addressed the senators on the same day hundreds of pro-life advocates went to Capitol Hill to urge Congress to cut the “funding of the abortion industry in the budget reconciliation process,” the prelates said.

“Necessary, long-standing, and historically bipartisan policies like the Hyde Amendment help prevent public funding for elective abortions themselves,” the bishops said, citing the decades-old rule that forbids federal funding of most abortions.

“Yet Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the U.S. at over 390,000 preborn children killed per year (about 40% of the total), still receives nearly $700 million annually — about a third of its revenue — from taxpayers,” they noted.

The letter further argued that federal funds to Planned Parenthood must be cut not just to limit abortion but also the gender ideology the organization promotes.  

Planned Parenthood is “the nation’s second-largest provider of hormone therapy for patients attempting ‘gender transition,’” the bishops said. 

“The off-label use of hormones and puberty blockers has proven to be a lucrative billion-dollar business in an ever-growing market,” they wrote. “Planned Parenthood offers ‘gender transition’ services at nearly 450 clinics across the nation, surpassing the number of its locations that perform abortions.”

Planned Parenthood itself has admitted that most of these patients leave their first visit with a hormone prescription, the bishops noted.

“As the rate of these destructive services has dramatically increased, so too has government funding,” the bishops said. They asked Congress to put the money toward supporting families in need rather than helping harmful services be carried out.

“As you consider how to best steward taxpayer resources in the weeks ahead, we call upon you to stop funding abortion and ‘gender transition’ industries that gravely violate human dignity. Instead, we urge you to prioritize the needs of struggling families so they can flourish,” the bishops said.