Pope Leo Slams the Gun “Pandemic” After Minnesota Massacre

His message after Minnesota’s tragedy was that ending gun proliferation is a moral duty, not a debate.

In the wake of the horrific shooting during a school Mass in Minnesota, Pope Leo XIV delivered a sharp rebuke against the unchecked spread of firearms.

“We offer prayers for the victims of the tragic shooting during a school Mass in the American State of Minnesota,” he said this morning, “including the countless children killed and injured every day around the world. Let us plead to God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world.”

The pope’s words cut through the platitudes that often follow such atrocities.

While he called for prayer, his central message was unmistakable: prayer is not enough when violence is enabled by easy access to deadly weapons.

For Pope Leo, the proliferation of guns is not just a political issue, but a moral one. Weapons designed to destroy human life have no place in a society that claims to value its children.

By naming gun violence a “pandemic,” the pope underscored its global reach and systemic roots.

His remarks remind Catholics and all people of goodwill that faith demands more than mourning — it demands action. Ending the scourge of firearms, he insisted, is part of the Christian duty to defend life.

Letters from Leo exists to carry the pope’s public witness into the urgent debates shaping our common life.

Today, that means amplifying Pope Leo’s clear condemnation of the gun pandemic — a call not only to pray for grieving families in Minnesota, but also to demand laws, policies, and care that prevent more children from dying at the altar or the classroom.

Our work here is to keep that witness alive after the headlines fade: to tell the story plainly, to hold attention on the victims and the urgent need for change, and to track the debate until it yields real protection for children’s lives.

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