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Cardinal Robert W. McElroy, the archbishop of Washington, gives the homily during a Vigil Mass for Peace on April 11, 2026 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle, joining Pope Leo XIV and Catholic parishes throughout the world in praying for peace that day. Providing Sign Language interpretation at left is Mary O\u2019Meara, the executive director of the Office of Deaf and Disabilities Ministries for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington. (Catholic Standard photo by Mihoko Owada)<\/p>\n
In his homily, Cardinal McElroy emphasized that, \u201cTonight we gather in prayer. We pray that the ceasefire holds and that it leads to a substantive foundation for the emergence of peace in the Middle East. We are aware of the barbaric nature of the Iranian regime and the enormous destruction U.S. and Israeli bombing has visited on Iran. And so we pray all the harder.\u201d<\/p>\n
The cardinal said that in their prayers, \u201cWe desperately ask our God, the Prince of Peace, to open the minds and hearts of all those in positions of power to look beyond their own interests and to see in its fullness the well-being of all those ensnared in this bitter and needless conflict.\u201d<\/p>\n
He encouraged people as they left church that evening, not only to pray, but also to advocate for peace with their representatives and leaders.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is not enough to say we have prayed. We must also act. For it is very possible that the negotiations will fail because of recalcitrance on one or both sides, and our president will move to reenter this immoral war,\u201d the cardinal said.<\/p>\n
Concluding his homily, Cardinal McElroy issued an impassioned plea for an end to the war against Iran, saying, \u201cAt that critical juncture, as disciples of Jesus Christ called to be peacemakers in the world, we must answer vocally and in unison: No. Not in our name. Not at this moment. Not with our country.\u201d<\/p>\n
The congregation in the cathedral responded with applause for several minutes.<\/p>\n
Celebrating the Mass one week after he had presided at the Easter Vigil in the cathedral, Washington\u2019s archbishop began his homily noting that the first words of the risen Christ to the Apostles were, \u201cPeace be with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Peace is the ultimate gift of the Resurrection, he said, adding that the peace of the Resurrection provides Jesus\u2019s followers today with \u201cthe only essential compass that we need for our lives on this Earth\u2026 For as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are called profoundly to be peacemakers in the world in which we live.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fostering that peace begins with the call \u201cto be builders of peace within our own hearts and souls,\u201d and to be \u201cbridge builders and reconcilers in our family life,\u201d the cardinal said. He added that in a time of polarization in the United States, its citizens are called to be peacemakers in the nation as it prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary.<\/p>\n
\u201cFinally, we must be builders of peace among nations, rejecting the pathway of war that lures us toward the ending of civilizations and the pursuit of domination rather than true peace,\u201d Cardinal McElroy said.<\/p>\n
The cardinal emphasized that \u201cit is this last responsibility which weighs most heavily upon us this night. For we are in the midst of an immoral war.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reflecting on the United States\u2019 war with Iran and its moral implications, Cardinal McElroy said, \u201cWe entered this war not out of necessity but rather choice. We failed to ardently pursue the pathway of negotiation to its end before turning to war. We had no clear intention, instead darting from unconditional surrender to regime change to the degradation of conventional weapons to the removal of nuclear materials. And we blinded ourselves to the cascade of global destructiveness that would flow from our attacks \u2013 the expansion of the war far beyond Iran, the disruption of the world economy, and the loss of life. Each of these policy failures is equally a moral failure which under Catholic just war principles renders both the initiation of this war and any continuation of it morally illegitimate.\u201d<\/p>\n
At his Vigil for Peace in Rome, Pope Leo repeated a plea made by Pope Saint John Paul II and other recent popes, saying, \u201cNo more war!\u201d<\/p>\n
Explaining the reason why he had encouraged the worldwide Vigils for Peace, the pope said, \u201cWe want to tell the whole world that it is possible to build peace, a new peace, that it is possible for all people, of all religions, of all ethnicities, to live together, and that we want to be disciples of Jesus Christ, united as brothers and sisters, all united in a world of peace.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t Cardinal Robert W. McElroy (at center) serves as the main celebrant at a Vigil Mass for Peace on April 11, 2026 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C. To the left of the cardinal, the concelebrants at the Mass included Washington Auxiliary Bishop Juan Esposito and Cardinal Wilton Gregory, an archbishop emeritus of Washington. To the right of Cardinal McElroy, the concelebrants at the Mass also included Washington Auxiliary Bishop Roy Campbell Jr. and Washington Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar. (Catholic Standard photo by Mihoko Owada)<\/p>\n The concelebrants at the Vigil Mass for Peace at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle included Cardinal Wilton Gregory, an archbishop emeritus of Washington; and Washington Auxiliary Bishops Roy Campbell Jr., Juan Esposito and Evelio Menjivar.<\/p>\n Welcoming the congregation of hundreds of people to the cathedral, its rector, Msgr. W. Ronald Jameson, said, \u201cThis evening, we thank God as He brought us all together to pray for peace\u2026 Together with one voice, we can pray for peace.\u201d<\/p>\n The intentions at the Mass at St. Matthew\u2019s Cathedral included a prayer for \u201can end to sectarian violence and aggression throughout the world, especially in Iran, Lebanon, Israel, Ukraine and Sudan; and for all those suffering in Haiti, Myanmar, Gaza and the West Bank; for an increase in wisdom, courage and determination among those who devote themselves to promoting peace and tolerance and an end to poisonous fundamentalism.\u201d<\/p>\n Another prayer was offered \u201cfor all those who have died as a result of war, gun violence, famine, terrorism and death by authoritarian governments. And for their families and friends who struggle with their loss.\u201d<\/p>\n Then the cardinal asked for a moment of silence, so people there could pray for peace. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t People mark a moment of silence to pray for peace during a Vigil Mass for Peace celebrated by Cardinal Robert W. McElroy at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C., on April 11, 2026. Pope Leo XIV had encouraged Catholics around the world to participate in a Vigil for Peace on that day. (Catholic Standard photo by Mihoko Owada)<\/p>\n A combined choir with 84 students from Lee\u2019s Summit West and Lee\u2019s Summit North high schools near Kansas City, Missouri, sang at the Mass, including helping to lead the singing of the opening hymn, \u201cO God of Love, O Prince of Peace.\u201d The choir members, accompanied by a brass quartet, also sang a stirring Communion antiphon, Dona Nobis Pacem (Latin for \u201cGrant us Peace.\u201d)<\/p>\n The students were on a school trip to Washington for the nation\u2019s 250th anniversary, and the marching bands from their schools performed in the Cherry Blossom Parade earlier that day.<\/p>\n As the Mass was ending, Cardinal McElroy thanked the student choir members \u201cfor raising our souls to heaven and reminding us what the world should be like.\u201d<\/p>\n
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