Bishop Barron shouldn’t presume to speak for The Pope.

However the pontiff’s claim, that God “does not listen” to the prayers of those who start war, seems incorrect for two reasons:

1) The Catholic Church has saints who started wars: Justinian I and Louis XI for example.

2) As Fr. Emmanuel Lemelson says, “No one, including the pontiff, can speak for God.”

To be sure, there is no compelling reason for the U.S. to have instigated the Iran War — as far as I can tell. I doubt the ongoing conflict fulfills the criteria of an Augustinian just war.

At this point, the only people supporting it are MAGA boomers and Israel-First psychopaths.

I hope we can see an end to this nightmare.