Pope Leo XIV on Sunday issued a powerful plea against what he called the global “pandemic of arms, large and small,” as he prayed for victims of a deadly school Mass shooting in the United States.Speaking in English from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square, the Chicago-born pontiff condemned both the Minnesota attack and the wider “logic of weapons” fueling conflicts across the globe.“Our prayers for the victims of the tragic shooting during a school Mass in the American state of Minnesota,” Leo said. “We hold in our prayers the countless children killed and injured every day around the world. Let us plead God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.”The pope’s words came days after a gunman opened fire during Mass at the Church of Annunciation in Minneapolis, where hundreds of Catholic school students were gathered. Two children were killed, 20 others were wounded, and the attacker—who fired more than 100 rifle rounds through stained-glass windows—took his own life.The massacre reignited the polarising US debate on gun laws. Democrats and gun-control advocates renewed calls for tighter background checks and restrictions, while Republicans once again leaned on “thoughts and prayers”—a response critics say sidesteps legislative action.Initially, Pope Leo’s condolences had been restrained, focusing only on the spiritual. In a telegram after the shooting, he expressed sorrow at the “terrible tragedy” and offered “heartfelt condolences and the assurance of spiritual closeness to all those affected.”But on Sunday, Leo sharpened his tone, aligning himself with his predecessor Francis, who frequently railed against the arms trade. Francis had branded weapons producers as “merchants of death” and, in a landmark 2015 address to the US Congress, asked lawmakers why such weapons continued to be sold.“Sadly, the answer, as we all know, is simply for money: money that is drenched in blood, often innocent blood,” Francis said at the time. “In the face of this shameful and culpable silence, it is our duty to confront the problem and to stop the arms trade.”Leo used his Sunday blessing to link the American tragedy with broader conflicts. Opening his appeal with a call for a ceasefire in Ukraine, he urged both sides to embrace dialogue.“It’s time that those responsible renounce the logic of weapons and take the path of negotiations and peace, with the support of the international community,” Leo said. “The voice of weapons must be silenced, while the voice of fraternity and justice must rise.”
