VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world must resist the allure of modern weapons which threaten to give conflicts a ferocity surpassing that of previous wars, Pope Leo XIV said.

"The heart of the church is torn apart from the cries that arise from places of war," he said at the conclusion of his general audience in St. Peter's Square June 18. "In particular from Ukraine, from Iran, from Israel, from Gaza."

"We must not become accustomed to war," the pope said. "Rather, we must push against the allure of powerful and sophisticated weapons as a temptation."

Quoting the Second Vatican Council's Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World ("Gaudium et Spes"), Pope Leo said that in modern-day warfare "scientific weapons of all kinds are used," and consequently "its atrocity threatens to lead the combatants to a barbarity far greater than that of past times."

"Therefore, in the name of human dignity and international law, I repeat to those responsible that which Pope Francis used to say: 'War is always a defeat,'" the pope said. And, quoting another of his predecessors, Pope Pius XII, he added: "Nothing is lost with peace. All can be lost with war."

Pope Leo's message came a few days after he expressed deep concern over the "seriously deteriorating" situation in the Middle East shortly after Israeli airstrikes were carried out on nuclear sites in Iran and retaliatory drone attacks on Israel were launched June 13.

"No one should ever threaten the existence of another," the pope had said during an audience with pilgrims in Rome for the Holy Year 2025 June 14. While it is right to hope for a world "free from the nuclear threat," 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."

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, told the Italian news agency ANSA June 17 that the Holy See is advocating for nuclear disarmament and has prepared a document on the immorality of not only the use but the possession of nuclear arms -- a notion previously expressed by the late Pope Francis.

WASHINGTON - The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) commemorates  Religious Freedom Week from June 22–29. This year’s theme, “Witnesses to Hope,” builds on the annual report released earlier this year by the Conference’s Committee for Religious Liberty that highlights the impact of political polarization on religious freedom. In addition to issues such as mandates for in vitro fertilization, and threats to Catholic ministries serving migrants, Religious Freedom Week also highlights crucial policy positions such as parental choice in education during a time when the faithful are urged to contact their Senators to express support for educational choice in the Senate’s budget reconciliation bill.

The USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, in collaboration with the Secretariat of Catholic Education and Our Sunday Visitor Institute, hosted a religious liberty essay contest. The top essays from the competition will be published during Religious Freedom Week.

Through prayer, education, and public action during Religious Freedom Week, the faithful can promote the essential right of religious freedom for Catholics and those of all faiths. For the latest information from the USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, please visit the Religious Liberty webpage and sign up for the First Freedom News monthly newsletter.

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This week’s poem in the Catholic Poetry Room is by Tim Bete. Adoration at St. Francis In front of monstrance, on his way to work, A man kneels down in prayer, his head on floor; A teen there meditates before she clerks, At a nearby 7-Eleven store; A teacher prays a chaplet, bead by bead, […]

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Husbands, love your wives, wives love your husbands, as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her . . . because we are members of his body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is […]

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Sts. Mark and Marcellian were twin brothers born in 3rd-century Rome to a respected Roman family. Raised as Christians during the reign of Emperor Diocletian, they were arrested for their faith and pressured to renounce it. Though their parents initially tried to persuade them to abandon Christianity, their steadfast witness led to the conversion of […]

ENCOUNTERING THE WORD — YOUR DAILY BIBLE VERSES “Our soul waits for the Lord; he is our help and shield. Yea, our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let thy steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in thee.” – Psalm 33:20-22 Please help spread […]

The post Your Daily Bible Verses — Psalm 33:20-22 appeared first on Integrated Catholic Life™.

CNA Staff, Jun 17, 2025 / 18:46 pm (CNA).

British lawmakers voted to decriminalize abortions in England and Wales in a move that pro-life advocates say could endanger women and unborn children.