Pope Leo, in message to Assisi gathering, calls for renewed commitment to peace

October 28, 2026

In a video message to participants in an international peace meeting in Assisi, Pope Leo XIV said that peace “must once again become the common ideal of all peoples, the guiding star for all our choices, the standard that exposes injustice, and the shared horizon for all.”

The three-day peace meeting, entitled “Unarmed and Disarming Peace,” was organized by the Community of Sant’Egidio. The meeting, which attracted prelates, scholars, and representatives of various religions, concluded on October 27, 40 years to the day after Pope St. John Paul II’s world day of prayer in Assisi.

Since 1986, the Sant’Egidio Community has organized annual events inspired by the Assisi prayer day. Pope Leo had planned to travel to Assisi for this year’s peace meeting, but cancelled his visit following his recent lung surgery.

“We must rebuild peace everywhere, not prepare for more wars,” Pope Leo said in his message. “War can never be waged in the name of God.”

“For us believers, ‘to fight in the name of religion means attacking religion itself,’“ continued the Pope, as he cited Magnifica Humanitas. “There is no such thing as a holy war: only peace is holy.”

The Pontiff added:

That is why the journey begun in Assisi as a shared quest for peace is, first and foremost, the path of prayer. Prayer may seem weak in the face of the powers of the world, but it is the humble strength of believers.

Let us turn to God, the giver of peace, that he may touch the hearts of those who seek war and terrorism. Let us not forget that prayer is never in vain. Indeed, prayer is a school of dialogue with God, with people and with all creatures. Let us think of Saint Francis, whose death we have commemorated on his eight-hundredth anniversary.

The world needs dialogue. The path of Assisi calls religious leaders to foster a climate of dialogue amongst the faithful and within society, so that the language of arrogance may give way to the language of peace, negotiation and understanding.

“Brothers and sisters, may our prayers obtain from God that peace for the world’s nations for which we long,” Pope Leo concluded. “May he make us unarmed instruments of his peace. ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God’“ (Mt 5:9).

 

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Further information:

• Video Message of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV to the Participants in the International Meeting “Unarmed and Disarming Peace” (Dicastery for Communication - Vatican Media, 10/27/26)
• Video Message of the Holy Father to the participants in the international meeting “Unarmed and Disarming Peace” in Assisi (Holy See Press Office, 10/27/26)
• Pope to Assisi Peace Meeting: 'May we be unarmed instruments of God's peace' (Vatican News, 10/27/26)
• Unarmed and Disarming Peace (Community of Sant'Egidio)