Pope Leo XIV Calls for Middle East Peace Amid US-Iran Talks

Pope Leo XIV issued a passionate call for an end to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East during a prayer vigil in St. Peter's Basilica on Saturday, urging world leaders to abandon displays of power and pursue dialogue amid the start of direct negotiations between the United States and Iran in Pakistan.

The pontiff, the first American-born pope, presided over the evening service as a fragile two-week ceasefire held in the seventh week of the war, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and disrupted global markets. Speaking to an audience in the Vatican, Leo decried what he described as a "delusion of omnipotence" fueling the violence. "Enough of the idolatry of self and money! Enough of the display of power! Enough of war!" he declared. He appealed directly to national leaders, saying, "Stop! It is time for peace! Sit at the table of dialogue and mediation, not at the table where rearmament is planned and deadly actions are decided."

Leo, a 70-year-old Chicago native elected last May following the death of his predecessor, did not name specific countries or figures in his remarks, which were planned before the talks were announced. However, he criticized the invocation of...