Speak Out Against Threats of Genocide
“‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.’”
As a Protestant pastor, I ordinarily do not focus intently on the Pope’s latest statements. Yet, since the Iran War, which our United States President has sunk us into, I’ve appreciated the American-born Pope’s brave statements condemning the war and those who forced it upon the world. Pope Leo XIV has not only been outspoken in his opposition to the United States’ and Israel’s lack of communication regarding their goals and process, but also challenges the moral and ethical leadership of Israel’s Prime Minister and the President of the United States. Our President even dropped an F-bomb threat on Iran, using vulgar and un-Christian language and threats on Easter Sunday.
According to the April 7, 2026, Vatican News article, “Pope: The threat against the entire people is unacceptable,” Pope Leo XIV chastises Israel’s and the United States’ leaders for their callous threats to attack civilian infrastructure and the international laws they would break. The US President’s threat to annihilate the millions of Iranian people would be an international war crime and against God’s laws. Thankfully, our President’s bluster remains unfulfilled. Like so many other times, our President’s kicking-the-can-down-the-road is another example of an ineffective bluff. On a dozen or more occasions, the President has used the timeline “two weeks” to threaten without following through. The annihilation threat, while morally reprehensible, appears to be another moment of pathetic bluster. Yet, we must always take his threats seriously.
The Pope profoundly states, “Today, as we all know, there has also been this threat against the entire people of Iran. And this is truly unacceptable! There are certainly issues of international law here, but even more, it is a moral question concerning the good of the people as a whole, in its entirety.” As Christians, we should all listen and respond to the pope’s words, speaking truth to power. The article concludes with the pope encouraging the world’s people “to contact the authorities-political leaders, congressmen-to ask them, to tell them, to work for peace and to reject war and violence.”
Today’s devotion is not a debate on whether war, in general, can be just. I am asking you to pray for God’s intervention because this war is unjust. The Iranian leadership, historically, has committed horrible atrocities, but our President and Israel’s Prime Minister have not formed global alliances or followed proper national or international legal processes. So far, we’ve enhanced Russia’s financial coffers and empowered Iran by seemingly starting a war without a plan for the Strait of Hormuz. For all our technological might, we continue to destroy civilian facilities, including a school building, filled with children who were injured or killed. The lack of proper planning and the callous rhetoric will have negative repercussions for decades to come, as the United States loses its moral high ground as a constitutional republic and a representative democracy with integrity. Pray for God to guide a way through this unjust mess.
