In a statement they themselves describe as a “Rare Joint Statement on the Morality of US Foreign Policy,” the Catholic Cardinals of Chicago (Blasé Cupich), Washington (Robert McElroy) and Newark (Joseph Tobin) urge that Pope Leo XIV’s warning against the growing “zeal for war” and “diplomacy based on force” be raised in the midst of “the most profound and searing debate about the moral foundation for America’s actions in the world since the end of the Cold War.”
The three quote from Pope Leo’s January 9 address to the Vatican diplomatic corps. His thoughts contribute “a truly moral foundation for international relations… which has provided us an enduring ethical compass for establishing the pathway for American foreign policy in coming years,” they write.
“As pastors and citizens, we embrace this vision for the establishment of a genuinely moral foreign policy for our nation. We seek to build a truly just and lasting peace… We renounce war as an instrument for narrow national interests and proclaim that military action must be seen only as a last resort in extreme situations, not a normal instrument of national policy. We seek a foreign policy that respects and advances the right to human life, religious liberty, and the enhancement of human dignity throughout the world, especially through economic assistance.
“Our nation’s debate on the moral foundation for American policy is beset by polarization, partisanship, and narrow economic and social interests. Pope Leo has given us the prism through which to raise it to a much higher level….”
