Overview
- Speaking in English at Castel Gandolfo, the pope named President Trump and asked for a “way out” of the conflict through a halt to violence and talks.
- He proposed an Easter truce and placed calls to the leaders of Israel and Ukraine as part of a push to cool fighting.
- During his first Easter Mass as pope, he warned that people are growing numb to wartime deaths and announced a peace prayer vigil for April 11.
- He rejected using faith to defend the war, saying Jesus is the king of peace and cannot be invoked to justify killing.
- U.S. Catholic leaders echoed his critique by questioning whether the Iran campaign meets just‑war standards, while Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth cast the war as divinely backed.