Por Judy Álvarez, SC
(Los Angeles, California) – During his weekly General Audience in the Paul VI Hall, Pope Leo XIV addressed global conflict zones. He expressed deep concern for those affected by violence in the Holy Land, Ukraine, and other parts of the world. Given the liturgical commemoration of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary on August 22, Pope Leo invited the faithful to pray and fast for peace, “imploring the Lord to grant us peace and justice, and to wipe away the tears of those who suffer because of ongoing armed conflicts.” 1
The Pope recalled that “Mary is the Mother of the faithful here on earth and is remembered as the Queen of Peace,” adding, “May Mary, Queen of Peace, intercede so that peoples may find the path of peace.”
At the audience, Pope Leo acknowledged a group of Polish-speaking faithful on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Częstochowa at Jasna Góra. He asked them “to include in your intentions the supplication for the gift of peace – a peace that is disarmed and disarming – for the whole world, especially for Ukraine and the Middle East.
The terms “disarmed and disarming” hearken back to Pope Francis, who, in his message for the 2025 World Day of Social Communications, sets forth a path of peace which each person can endeavor: “Let us disarm words and we will help to disarm the world. Disarmed and disarming communication allows us to share a different view of the world and to act in a manner consistent with our human dignity.”2
On March 14th, in his final weeks of life, Pope Francis reiterated this message to Luciano Fontana, editor in chief of the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. “We must disarm words, to disarm minds, and disarm the Earth. There is a great need for reflection, calmness, and an awareness of complexity.”3
To honor Pope Leo’s call to pray for peace today, you are invited to use the following prayer from the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Pope Francis’ Prayer for Peace
Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflicts by our own powers and by the force of our arms. How many moments of hostility and darkness have we experienced; how much blood has been shed; how many lives have been shattered; how many hopes have been buried… But our efforts have been in vain.
Now, Lord, come to our aid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: “Never again war!”; “With war everything is lost”. Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarreling into forgiveness.
Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words “division”, “hatred” and “war” be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be “brother”, and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam!
Amen.4
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- Vatican News (2025, August 20). Pope Leo calls for day of prayer and fasting for peace. Vaticannews.va. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-08/pope-calls-for-day-of-prayer-and-fasting-for-peace.html ↩︎
- America Magazine (2025, May 12). Full text: Pope Leo XIV’s address to the media. Americamagazine.org. https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2025/05/12/pope-leo-xiv-address-media-250657/ ↩︎
- Vatican News (2025, March 18). Pope Francis: War is Absurd. Let’s Disarm the Earth. Vaticannews.va. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-03/pope-letter-corriere-della-sera-newspaper-appeal-disarmament-dip.html
↩︎ - United States Conference of Catholic Bishop (2025, May 12). Pope Francis’ Prayer for Peace. Usccb.org. https://www.usccb.org/prayers/pope-francis-prayer-peace ↩︎
Photo Credit: (ANS) Mario Bogani: an artistic life in search of the face of Christ