Pope Leo XIV Calls for Global Prayer Vigil for Peace

Pope Leo XIV has announced a global prayer vigil for peace to be held on April 11, 2026, following an impassioned appeal for world leaders to lay down their weapons and prioritize dialogue over domination. The vigil is scheduled for Saturday, April 11, at 18:00 local time, with the Pope presiding over the service in Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

The announcement was made during the traditional Urbi et Orbi message on Easter Sunday, where the Pope addressed tens of thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square. Pope Leo XIV urged those who possess the power to unleash wars to choose a path of peace, emphasizing that such peace must not be imposed by force but instead achieved through dialogue. He stated that the goal of such encounters should be not to dominate others, but to encounter them.

Addressing the ‘Globalization of Indifference’

During his address, Pope Leo XIV warned that the international community is growing accustomed to violence and is becoming increasingly indifferent to the deaths of thousands of people. He highlighted that this indifference extends to the hatred and division caused by war, as well as the resulting social and economic consequences.

We cannot continue to be indifferent! And we cannot resign ourselves to evil!

Pope Leo XIV, Urbi et Orbi Message

The Pope utilized the phrase globalisation of indifference, a term borrowed from the late Pope Francis. In his message, Pope Leo XIV recalled the final words addressed to the world by Pope Francis on April 20, 2025, in which the former pontiff noted a great thirst for death, for killing within the many conflicts raging across different parts of the globe.

Pope Leo XIV further invoked the teachings of Saint Augustine, quoting the sentiment, If you fear death, love the resurrection!, to argue that evil is not the final word because it has been defeated by the Risen One.

Holy Week Appeals for Non-Violence

The call for a global vigil is the culmination of a series of appeals for peace made by Pope Leo XIV throughout Holy Week and the Easter Triduum. This sequence of pleas began on March 29 during the Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, attended by 40,000 faithful.

In his Palm Sunday homily, the Pope described Jesus as the King of peace and a God who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. During the same liturgy, he asserted that God does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war and whose hands are full of blood.

The Pope continued these themes of suffering and peace on Good Friday, where he participated in the Via Crucis at the Colosseum, symbolically carrying the weight of human suffering through the stations of the cross.

Global Response and Local Vigils

The call for the April 11 vigil has been taken up by various religious institutions and dioceses worldwide. In the United States, parishes and dioceses are planning local vigils to coincide with the event in Rome.

In Brazil, the Archdiocese of Belém has organized a mass for peace in response to the appeal from Pope Leo XIV. The urgency of these prayers is underscored by ongoing global tensions, including the conflict in Iran.

The Pope’s messages throughout the Easter season have consistently targeted those with the authority to end conflicts, urging them to reject the use of the sword, noting that those who take the sword will perish by sword.