By Courtney Mares, OSV News
ROME – Pope Leo XIV prayed for world leaders to “abandon projects of death” in a video message released by the Vatican on March 5 calling on people around the world to pray for peace.
“Today we lift up our prayer for peace in the world, asking that nations renounce weapons and choose the path of dialogue and diplomacy,” Pope Leo said in the video.
“Help us understand that true security does not come from control fueled by fear, but from trust, justice, and solidarity among peoples,” he added.
The four-minute video, published by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network as part of the Pope’s monthly prayer intention for March, shows Pope Leo holding an olive branch inside the Church of San Pellegrino in Vatican City.
“Disarm our hearts of hatred, resentment and indifference, so we may become instruments of reconciliation,” the Pope prayed.
At the start of each month, the Pope releases a video offering a prayer for a specific intention, inviting the faithful to join him.
The selection of March for a prayer intention focused on disarmament and peace had been announced in 2025, but takes on added significance following the outbreak of the U.S. and Israel-Iran war earlier this week.
“Lord, enlighten the leaders of the nations, so they may have the courage to abandon projects of death, halt the arms race, and place the lives of the most vulnerable at the center,” Pope Leo prayed. “May the nuclear threat never again dictate the future of humanity.”
In the video, Pope Leo also repeated the words with which he began his pontificate from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica on May 8: “Peace be with you,” a phrase drawn from the Gospel of John 20:19, which Jesus speaks to his disciples after the Resurrection.
“Lord of Life, you shaped every human being in your image and likeness. We believe you created us for communion, not for war, for fraternity, not for destruction,” the Pope prayed.
“You who greeted your disciples saying, ‘Peace be with you,’ grant us the gift of your peace and the strength to make it a reality in history.”
The Pope closed with a prayer for the Holy Spirit to make people faithful and creative builders of peace in daily life.
“May every kind word, every gesture of reconciliation, and every choice for dialogue be seeds of a new world,” he said.
Courtney Mares is Vatican Editor for OSV News. Follow her on X @catholicourtney.