The urgent need to act for nuclear abolition 

By Art LaffinPax Christi USA 2016 Teacher of Peace "The development of nuclear weapons signifies not a country’s elevation to greatness, but its descent to the darkest depths of depravity. These weapons are not a necessary evil; they are the ultimate evil." -- A-bomb survivor Setsuko Thurlow, Nobel peace prize ceremony for ICAN, December 2017 This August 6-9 marks the 81st anniversary of the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

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In Barcelona, Pope Leo blends the personal and the social

by Johnny Zokovitch Lost perhaps in the torrent of news that rushes past us each day is an interesting encounter that Pope Leo had on his apostolic visit through Spain in June. In his stop in Barcelona, the Holy Father had a dialogue with three young people, each of whom drew on their own very personal experiences to raise questions for him to consider and respond to.

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Thoughts on socialism and the wisdom of Joe Nangle

by Johnny Zokovitch For most of my adult life, the idea that one might critique capitalism as unsustainable or even morally wrong invited eye rolls and one’s immediate dismissal as being an “unserious” person. To be labeled as a socialist or a communist meant being shunted to the extreme margins of our national conversation, or worse, considered treasonous and unpatriotic. …

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Take action: Stop deregulation of gun industry

The following alert was prepared by our colleagues at the Quixote Center. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is proposing 34 rule changes that will make the selling and trafficking of weapons much easier and the gun industry far more deregulated. The Quixote Center has prepared a helpful comment guide regarding what they consider the four most egregious rule changes.

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The rise of the military-technology complex

How Silicon Valley tech firms remade US defense contracting. And then opened the Pentagon’s checkbook—wide.

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An ordination whose time has come

Bishops Boxie and Studniewski Excitement filled the air as my husband and I joined more than 2,500 people in the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC on July 7. For the first time in a long time, two local men – Robert Boxie, III and Gary Studniewski – were elevated to the order of bishop. At age 45, Bishop Boxie is now the youngest bishop currently serving in the United States.

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A Christianity to be rejected, a Christianity to be embraced

by Johnny Zokovitch This past weekend, a visiting priest at my church offered a poignant story. He shared that as he was traveling to St. Louis (wearing his collar so visibly a priest), a man came up to him in the airport and wanted to tell him the story of why he no longer goes to church. The man started by explaining that he was in church one Sunday, worshiping with his wife.

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July 17: Pax Christi International webinar on human rights in Palestine

From our colleagues at Pax Christi International: The expansion of the death penalty under recently approved Israeli legislation has raised serious legal, human rights, and moral concerns. In response, this Friday, July 17 at 8 AM Eastern/5 AM Pacific (2 PM Brussels), Pax Christi International and Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel are offering this webinar to examine the law from both legal and ethical perspectives. 

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Answering Pope Leo’s nonviolent appeal

Last month, Marie Dennis (Pax Christi USA's 2022 Teacher of Peace) and Pace e Bene's Ken Butigan, the co-directors of the Catholic Institute for Nonviolence (a project of Pax Christi International), joined Catholic Nonviolence Initiative director Nicolás Paz in Rome facilitating the institute’s seminar “Answering Pope Leo's nonviolent appeal,” featuring scholars of strategic nonviolence Kathleen Gallagher Cunningham (University of Maryland), …

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Take action: Tell Congress to spend on people, not the Pentagon

Over the past year, the increase in military spending worldwide …  has been enormous: let us not call “defense” a rearmament that increases tensions and insecurity, depletes investment in education and health, undermines trust in diplomacy, and enriches elites who care nothing for the common good. —Pope Leo XIV, address to Sapienza University, May 2026 The following alert is shared from our colleagues with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas…

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Restoring narratives to fulfill equality declared in 1776

Written by Leslye ColvinAuthor of Pax Christi USA's "Seeking Wisdom's light: Reflections for Advent 2024" Use this link to find additional resources related to the 250th anniversary of the US. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

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Time to grow up America

by Johnny Zokovitch I’ve been contemplating this column, falling as it does on the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, for some time. I’m old enough to remember the bicentennial year, 1976; although I was only eight, I recall a different mood, a different sense of celebration, than what I am seeing now. But I’m neither romantic nor nostalgic about the past.

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July 14: Building a civilization of love, a webinar on Magnifica Humanitas

In May, Pope Leo XIV released his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas: On safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence. Pax Christi USA invites all to join us for a special webinar about Magnifica Humanitas, its messages and lessons. Panelists will discuss Catholic Social Teaching, just peace, war, labor and economic justice, education, and more.

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Prayer-study-action for nuclear disarmament

As the anniversaries of the Trinity Test (July 16) and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and 9) grow near, we must be aware and inform others that the risk of a nuclear war is greater today than it has been since 1986. There are no nuclear weapons limitation treaties, no treaties about monitoring nuclear developments, and most of the nuclear powers are posed to modernize and expand their nuclear arsenals…

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Vatican II priests cultivate a hope that has seen some things

by Johnny Zokovitch Not a day goes by in which someone I know raises with me a plea for hope. Every gathering I attend, it seems that a constituent element is the question, “Where do you find hope these days?” It is a reasonable inquiry in these dark days. During the Q&A session at the recent 10th anniversary dinner for the Archdiocese of St.

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Pax Christi USA recognizes Archbishop John Wester with its 2026 Teacher of Peace award

*** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE *** Pax Christi USA, the national Catholic peace movement, has recognized Santa Fe’s Archbishop John C. Wester as the 2026 recipient of the Pax Christi USA Teacher of Peace award, its highest honor. The award will be presented at an event later this year, location and date to be determined. In January 2022 Archbishop Wester, whose archdiocese is located in one of the key locations of the US nuclear industry, issued his courageous and ground-breaking pastoral letter "

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A Letter from ‘Just War Theory:’ Love can Let Go | Political Theology Network

With Pope Leo’s recent declaration of just war being “outdated,” Eli McCarthy pens a letter from just war theory, asking to be let go.

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Lauren Agresti receives 2026 Sr. Dianna Ortiz OSU Peacemaker award

Washington, DC – Pax Christi USA, the national Catholic peace movement, has named Lauren Agresti, Senior Counsel and Director of Legal Services for the Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition (TASSC), as the recipient of this year's Sr. Dianna Ortiz, OSU Peacemaker Award. The annual award is given to a young adult (under 40) whose life and work exemplifies the commitment to justice, contemplative presence, faith-based activism, compassion, and prophetic, nonviolent witness of 2000 Teacher of Peace awardee and former staff member…

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Reflecting on the nexus between history and our own lives

by Johnny Zokovitch There is a distinct pleasure in reading a book written by someone you know well. Add gratitude to that pleasure when the book is written by someone who has mentored and shaped you and is, in large part, responsible for how you see, interpret and understand the world. Such has been my experience in reading Falling into God…

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Catholics Call on the USCCB to Protect Taybeh

Join us in using our collective voice as Catholic faithful to call on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to use their voice and power to protect Taybeh. We urge the United States Conference of...

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June 18: Join us for our second PAX Mass for 2026!

Join the Pax Christi USA community on Zoom on Thursday, June 18, 8 PM Eastern/5 PM Pacific for the second of four online PAX Masses for 2026. This month, our prayers will focus on the special intentions for June: the Sacred Heart of Jesus • Gun Violence Awareness • Juneteenth • Pride • Torture Awareness. Use this link to download the program for the June 18…

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June 25: Solidarity at Delaney Hall webinar

Please join Pax Christi USA  for a webinar on Thursday, June 25, 7 PM Eastern on the role that faithful Catholics are playing in the solidarity movement with our neighbors who are being targeted by ICE. You are probably aware of the ongoing resistance and solidarity movement outside the Delaney Hall detention center in Newark. You may not be aware that faithful Catholics including members of Pax Christi New Jersey have been active outside Delaney Hall providing care as a form of resistance for over a year.

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Pax Christi members respond to Magnifica Humanitas

Last month, Pope Leo XIV published his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, On safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence. We invited a few Pax Christi members to reflect on the encyclical and share their thoughts. Please feel free to add your thoughts in the comments below, or send them to jcoode@paxchristiusa.org. Use this link to read Johnny Zokovitch's most recent essay which focuses on Magnifica Humanitas.

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Remembering how much is hidden from us

by Johnny Zokovitch Jonesy lived in his car, parked day-in and day-out, in the same space on the street in front of where I lived. The proximity to my home afforded him a degree of safety; I lived in a Catholic Worker House, sharing my living space with unhoused folks as well as my family. People understood us as an informal shelter and drop-in center for those who lived on the streets.

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Honoring and working to bring to fruition JFK’s nuclear disarmament dream

The following statement was shared by Pax Christi USA Peace Pair Sam Alves and Merwyn De Mello. Sam Alves Merwyn De Mello As a Pax Christi USA Peace Pair, we acknowledge the landmark peace speech given by President John F. Kennedy on this day 64 years ago — June 10, 1963 — at American University in Washington, DC, during which he declared the United States’ intention of working towards complete nuclear disarmament:

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Pope Leo: Just war theory is outdated

by Johnny Zokovitch I think it is fair to say that Pope Leo XIV’s recent encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas (On safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence) has everyone talking. The encyclical could not have been more timely, dropping into the midst of graduating college seniors booing commencement speakers’ praise of artificial intelligence and the US government’s contrary efforts to both reign it in and expand its use–particularly in service of the Pentagon’s agenda.

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Reflection: Sacred Peace Walk 2026

Written by Sam Chawla-RiosPax Christi USA Young Adult Caucus This past Holy Week (March 28-April 3), I had the privilege of participating in the annual Sacred Peace Walk in Nevada, on the unceded land of the Piaute and Western Shoshone Nations. Little did I know going into it that I would return home a changed person.  To briefly provide a high-level recap of the week, roughly 25 of us walked through the desert for five days, covering around 60 miles.

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