Pope Leo XIV has chosen the words of the prophet Isaiah – “They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks” (Is 2:4) – as the theme for the 2026 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, to be observed on September 1. The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development announced the theme on June 2, noting that the Holy Father’s forthcoming message will draw a direct link between armed conflict and environmental harm.

The annual observance, instituted for the universal Church by Pope Francis in 2015, builds on an earlier Orthodox tradition dating to 1989 and, more anciently, the Byzantine liturgical feast of the Indiction on September 1. It opens the Season of Creation, which runs until the feast of St Francis of Assisi on October 4.

According to the Dicastery, the papal message will underline how war and violence inflict lasting damage on natural resources, constituting both a failure in the Christian duty of stewardship and a threat to the lives of hundreds of millions, particularly the poor. It laments that growing awareness of these impacts has not yet produced sufficient institutions or political will to prevent conflicts and pursue peaceful resolutions. The Isaiah verse, the statement adds, serves as “an explicit invitation to prioritise development and sustainability over violence and destruction”.

The chosen passage from Isaiah 2 forms part of a classic eschatological vision of the messianic age, in which nations stream to the mountain of the Lord, learn His ways and end the cycle of war. Catholic biblical commentary has long read these verses as pointing ultimately to the peace brought by Christ, while recognising their moral call to justice and the right ordering of human affairs in the present age.

Pope Leo XIV, the Chicago-born former Augustinian prior general and prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, was elected on May 8, 2025. His pontificate has continued the Church’s reflection on integral human development and care for creation while maintaining a focus on Augustinian themes of unity in Christ.

The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, established by Pope Francis in 2016 through the merger of several pontifical councils, holds particular responsibility for questions of justice, peace, migration and ecology in the light of the Church’s social doctrine.

This year’s announcement comes as the Church continues to mark the day with prayer, reflection and calls to responsible stewardship, consistent with the constant teaching that the goods of creation are ordered to the glory of God and the common good of humanity. The full text of Pope Leo XIV’s message is expected in the coming weeks.