As pope seeks dialogue and diplomacy, 2 US cardinals reject US-Israeli war in Iran

Pope Leo XIV expressed “deep sorrow” Monday over the death of a Maronite Catholic priest in southern Lebanon, while issuing a restrained appeal for an end to the U.S.-Israel war in Iran. The Vatican’s statement came as two prominent American cardinals offered sharp criticism of the conflict.

The Rev. Pierre El Raii, pastor of Qlayaa, was killed in a bombing while attempting to rescue a wounded parishioner, according to Vatican News. In response, Pope Leo prayed for all those killed, particularly children, and expressed concern over the ongoing hostilities.

“He is following events with concern and prays for an end to hostilities as soon as possible,” said Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni in an evening statement.

Since the war began last week, the Pope has maintained a measured tone, advocating for dialogue rather than making forceful condemnations. Italian newspaper La Repubblica highlighted this contrast, noting that while the pontiff speaks in secular terms of diplomacy, political leaders increasingly cite religious arguments and scripture to justify military action.

The Pope’s cautious approach stands in sharp contrast to the forceful statements from U.S. Catholic leadership. Cardinal Robert McElroy, archbishop of Washington, directly challenged the moral legitimacy of the war, arguing that it failed to meet traditional “just war” criteria.

“Lebanon may fall into civil war. The world’s oil supply is under great strain. The potential disintegration of Iran could well produce new and dangerous realities. And the possibility of immense casualties on all sides is immense,” McElroy told his diocesan newspaper. “For all of these reasons, Catholic teaching leads to the conclusion that our entry into this war was not morally legitimate.”

Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago issued an even more pointed critique, specifically targeting the White House’s social media presentation of the conflict that combined action movie clips with actual war footage.

“A real war with real death and real suffering being treated like it’s a video game — it’s sickening,” Cupich stated. “Our government is treating the suffering of the Iranian people as a backdrop for our own entertainment, as if it’s just another piece of content to be swiped through while we’re waiting in line at the grocery store.”

The criticism extends beyond American borders. Filipino Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, expressed concern about how modern warfare increasingly detaches military action from human consequences.

“From distant command centers, military operators stare at screens where maps, radar signals and algorithm-generated targets move like icons in a computer game. A cursor moves. A coordinate is selected. A click is made. And a missile is launched,” he stated in comments reported by Vatican News.

The Holy See has historically maintained diplomatic neutrality in international conflicts. However, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, rejected the Trump administration’s justification for preventive strikes against Iran.

“If states were to be recognized as having a right to ‘preventive war,’ according to their own criteria and without a supranational legal framework, the whole world would risk being set ablaze,” Parolin told Vatican Media.

This diplomatic balancing act now falls to Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, recently appointed as the Vatican’s new ambassador to the United States. Caccia faces the delicate task of navigating relations between the Holy See, American bishops, and the White House during this period of heightened tension.

Vatican commentator Massimo Faggioli, professor at Trinity College Dublin, noted that Caccia must manage growing friction “between the Vatican of Leo XIV, the first pope from the USA, and this USA of Trump now at the head of a war fueled by a national-religious rhetoric.”

Both Cardinals McElroy and Cupich, appointed by Pope Francis, have previously criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Earlier this year, they joined Newark Cardinal Joseph Tobin in calling for the administration to adopt a more moral approach to foreign policy.

The Associated Press’s religion coverage receives support through collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc.