Overview
- Cardinals Blase Cupich, Robert McElroy and Joseph Tobin issued a joint declaration renouncing war for narrow national interests and urging that force be treated only as a last resort.
- The statement cites recent actions tied to Venezuela, Greenland and the war in Ukraine as raising basic questions about military force, sovereignty and the meaning of peace.
- They criticized cuts to U.S. foreign assistance, including reductions at USAID, arguing that diminished aid worsens hunger, health outcomes and the dignity of vulnerable populations.
- Grounding their critique in Pope León XIV’s recent speech to the diplomatic corps, the cardinals called for a foreign policy centered on human dignity, the right to life and religious freedom.
- Describing their intervention as nonpartisan and unusual, the cardinals said they will teach and advocate on these issues in coming months, as the administration defends the legality and rationale of its actions.