Pope Leo XIV implored global leaders to end ongoing wars and renounce violence during his Easter "Urbi et Orbi" blessing on Sunday from the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.

"Let those who have weapons lay them down! Let those who have the power to unleash wars choose peace! Not a peace imposed by force, but through dialogue! Not with the desire to dominate others, but to encounter them!" the pontiff declared, emphasizing Christ's resurrection as a model of nonviolent power.

The message, delivered on April 5, 2026, marked Leo XIV's first Easter as pope since his election on May 8, 2025. Born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago on September 14, 1955, he is the first U.S.-born pope, the first from the Order of Saint Augustine, and the second American pontiff after Pope Francis. A former missionary in Peru and prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, Leo has consistently opposed armed conflicts, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the war in Gaza, and violence in Sudan and Syria.

Leo lamented a growing "globalization of indifference" to violence, quoting his predecessor Pope Francis's final Urbi et Orbi address: "What a great thirst for death, for killing, we witness each day in the many conflicts raging in different parts of the world!" He warned against resigning to the deaths of thousands and the hatred sown by wars, urging transformation by Christ's peace, which goes beyond mere ceasefires to change hearts.

While the pope did not name specific conflicts in his address, the plea comes amid escalating tensions, including the Iran war, where Leo recently appealed directly to U.S. President Donald Trump for an "off-ramp." Earlier during the Easter Vigil, he spoke against numbing to worldwide strife.

The pontiff announced a prayer vigil for peace on April 11 in St. Peter's Basilica, inviting all to join in imploring divine intervention for a world "ravaged by wars." "We cannot continue to be indifferent! And we cannot resign ourselves to evil!" he stressed, drawing on St. Augustine: "If you fear death, love the resurrection!"

Leo's message tied Easter's joy to hope amid darkness, portraying the resurrection as the defeat of evil and the dawn of a new humanity marked by justice and brotherhood. In his Easter Sunday Mass homily, he described the proclamation of Christ's rising as opening believers to unfailing hope and light that death cannot extinguish.

The address, broadcast worldwide, underscored the pope's continuity with Francis while asserting his voice on peace as a core theme of his young pontificate.