In late March and early April 2026, some people on social media claimed Pope Leo XIV rejected the notion that God can be used to justify war. For example, one Reddit thread (archived) shared an image meme that quoted Leo as saying "Jesus is the King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them."
The claim spread on other social media websites, such as (archived) Facebook (archived) and Instagram (archived). Snopes readers sent emails asking whether the rumor was true.
Leo did say that God cannot be used to justify war and that God rejects the prayers of those who wage it during his first Palm Sunday Mass as pope. Therefore, we've rated this quote as correctly attributed to the pope.
The Vatican's website posted an English-language transcription of Leo's Palm Sunday homily on March 29, 2026, at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City.
Pope Leo's translated homily in full was (bold emphasis our own, italics the Vatican's):
Dear brothers and sisters,
As Jesus walks the Way of the Cross, we place ourselves behind him, following in his footsteps. As we walk with him, we contemplate his passion for the sake of humanity, his broken heart, and his life as a gift of love.
We turn our gaze to Jesus, who reveals himself as King of Peace, even as war looms around him. He remains steadfast in meekness, while others are stirring up violence. He offers himself to embrace humanity, even as others raise swords and clubs. He is the light of the world, though darkness is about to engulf the earth. He came to bring life, even as plans unfold to condemn him to death.
As King of Peace, Jesus' desire is to bring the world into the Father's arms, tearing down every barrier that separates us from God and from our neighbor, for "He is our peace" (Eph 2:14).
As King of Peace, Jesus enters into Jerusalem not upon a horse, but upon a donkey, fulfilling the ancient prophecy that calls for rejoicing at the arrival of the Messiah: "Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war-horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall command peace to the nations" (Zech 9:9–10).
As King of Peace, when one of his disciples drew his sword to defend him and struck the high priest's servant, Jesus immediately stopped him, saying: "Put your sword back into its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Mt 26:52).
As King of Peace, while he was burdened with our sufferings and pierced for our sins, Jesus "did not open his mouth, like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent" (Is 53:7). He did not arm himself, or defend himself, or fight any war. He revealed the gentle face of God, who always rejects violence. Rather than saving himself, he allowed himself to be nailed to the cross, embracing every cross borne in every time and place throughout human history.
Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: "Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood" (Is 1:15).
As we set our gaze upon him who was crucified for us, we can see a crucified humanity. In his wounds, we see the hurts of so many women and men today. In his last cry to the Father, we hear the weeping of those who are crushed, who have no hope, who are sick and who are alone. Above all, we hear the painful groans of all those who are oppressed by violence and are victims of war.
Christ, King of Peace, cries out again from his cross: God is love! Have mercy! Lay down your weapons! Remember that you are brothers and sisters!
In the words of the Servant of God, Bishop Tonino Bello, I would like to entrust this cry to Mary Most Holy, who stands beneath the cross of her Son and weeps also at the feet of those who are crucified today:
"Holy Mary, woman of the third day, grant us the certainty that, in spite of all, death will no longer hold sway over us; that the injustices of peoples are numbered; that the flashes of war are fading into the twilight; that the sufferings of the poor are breathing their last. And grant, finally, that the tears of all the victims of violence and pain will soon be dried up like frost beneath the spring sun" (Maria, donna dei nostri giorni).
Again, this transcription is a translation. That's because Leo spoke Italian during the Mass, video of which The Associated Press shared on YouTube (archived).
The Vatican website also has the transcription of Leo's homily in Italian. Snopes matched a portion of the Associated Press recording with the transcript provided by the Vatican.
Leo began the homily, according to the Vatican, by saying, "Cari fratelli e sorelle, mentre Gesù percorre la via della croce, ci mettiamo dietro di Lui, seguiamo i suoi passi." At 47:38 into the AP's recording, Leo says those words.
The line in which Leo says no one can use God to justify war appears in the Vatican's Italian transcript as:
Fratelli, sorelle, questo è il nostro Dio: Gesù, Re della pace. Un Dio che rifiuta la guerra, che nessuno può usare per giustificare la guerra, che non ascolta la preghiera di chi fa la guerra e la rigetta dicendo: "Anche se moltiplicaste le preghiere, io non ascolterei: le vostre mani grondano sangue" (Is 1,15).
At 51:06 in the AP video, Leo says that line, minus the citation at the end.
A Snopes reporter fluent in Italian translated the quote literally, noting that the Vatican made slight edits for English fluency without changing the meaning. The literal translation reads:
Brothers, sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, a God who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war, who does not listen to the prayer of those who wage war and rejects it, saying: "Even if you multiplied your prayers, I would not listen: your hands drip with blood."
Snopes has fact-checked a number of rumors claiming Leo has said various things critical of U.S. President Donald Trump and/or the U.S.-Israel war against Iran.
Snopes reporter Aleksandra Wrona contributed to this report with translations.