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Following the US military’s “Operation Midnight Hammer” — the June 22 strike targeting Iranian nuclear facilities — Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, issued a statement urging prayer and renewed dialogue.
The message, released by the archdiocese on the same day as the operation, came as global leaders began weighing the geopolitical implications of the strike. Archbishop Broglio, who also serves as president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, called for a halt to the violence and a recommitment to peace.
“With all men and women of good will, we beg Almighty God to end the proliferation of acts of war and to inspire dialogue before more innocent people are harmed,” he wrote. “My heart goes out to all victims and also to those whose lives are in danger. Let us beg the Prince of Peace for an end to hostilities.”
The archbishop also offered a personal word to members of the military, many of whom now face renewed danger in the region.
“My prayers are with them,” he stated. “They once again find themselves in a situation of armed conflict. I pray also for their families and all of those who suffer uncertainties in these times. Let us pray for peace.”
The archbishop’s statement reflects the Church’s ongoing emphasis on the dignity of human life and the pursuit of peace through nonviolent means. His words aligned with the sentiments Pope Leo XIV expressed the same day.
As CatholicVote previously reported, the Holy Father reminded the faithful during his Sunday Angelus address that “there are no ‘distant’ conflicts when human dignity is at stake.” He warned that “war does not solve problems; on the contrary, it amplifies them and inflicts deep wounds on the history of peoples, which take generations to heal.”
