Pope Leo urges world against growing numb to war in Easter vigil

In his first Easter vigil as head of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo urged followers not to grow numb to war and work for peace.

Speaking in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican to an audience of clergy and followers on Apr. 4, Pope Leo said in his homily that mistrust and fear have been allowed to "sever the bonds between us through war, injustice and the isolation of peoples and nations."

He then exhorted, "Let us not allow ourselves to be paralysed!"

Pope Leo also urged Catholics to follow the example of saints who have struggled for justice so that "Easter gifts of harmony and peace may grow and flourish everywhere."

While he did not name a specific conflict during his Easter vigil homily, he has recently rebuked world leaders for alluding to scripture to justify the ongoing war in Iran.

"Jesus is the King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war," the Pope said during the Palm Sunday mass held on Mar. 29.

"He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them," he added.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has repeatedly applied a religious framing in his remarks on the war.

In one interview, he commented that the U.S. troops "need a connection with their almighty God" as the U.S. was fighting "religious fanatics" who sought nuclear weapons in order for some "religious Armageddon", CNN reported.

On Mar. 25, just days before Pope Leo's Palm Sunday comments, Hegseth led his first monthly Christian worship service at the Pentagon, during which he quoted from the Bible as he prayed for U.S. service members.

Top image via Vatican News / YouTube