Madonna has urged the pope to travel to Gaza and “bring your light to the children before it’s too late.”
She also called for the release of the hostages held by Hamas.
The Queen of Pop posted her appeal to Pope Leo XIV on social media Monday, saying her son Rocco’s birthday prompted her to write the post. She called the post an effort to combat starvation in the war-torn enclave.
“Most Holy Father. Please go to Gaza and bring your light to the children before it’s too late,” she wrote. “As a mother, I cannot bear to watch their suffering.”
She added, “The children of the world belong to everyone. You are the only one of us who cannot be denied entry. We need the humanitarian gates to be fully opened to save these innocent children. There is no more time. Please say you will go. Love, Madonna.”
The singer wrote in a caption that she wasn’t taking sides in the war that began with Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. She said she is praying for the hostages held by terror groups in Gaza.
“I am not pointing fingers, placing blame or taking sides. Everyone is suffering. Including the mothers of the hostages,” she wrote. “I pray that they are released as well. I am merely trying to do what I can to keep these children from dying of starvation.”
Madonna has visited Israel multiple times, including a 2019 appearance at Eurovision in Tel Aviv, where she inserted a call for peace in the lyrics of her song “Future,” during which two of her dancers wore Israeli and Palestinian flags on their backs. She has also adopted the name Esther and incorporates Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism, into her spiritual practice.
She has spoken out about the war before. Days after the October 7 attack, she decried some of the atrocities committed during the invasion, along with the subsequent murder of a Palestinian-American boy in the Chicago area.
“What the fuck is going on in the world?” she said at the time, according to The Guardian. “How can human beings be so cruel to one another? It’s just getting worse. It frightens me.”
The pop icon has a complicated relationship with the Catholic Church. She was raised Catholic, but her 1989 “Like a Prayer” music video, which featured burning crosses, was banned by the Vatican, which encouraged a boycott of her concerts.
In 2022, she attempted to mend fences via a tweet directed at Pope Francis.
“I’m a good Catholic,” she wrote. “I Swear! I mean I don’t Swear! Its been a few decades since my last confession. Would it be possible to meet up one day to discuss some important matters ? I’ve been ex communicated 3 times. It doesn’t seem fair.”
The pope has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza, asking the international community to respect humanitarian laws and the obligation to protect civilians. He spoke out last month after the IDF shelled a Gaza Catholic church, killing three, in what it said was a mistake.
“I once again call for an immediate end to the barbarity of this war and for a peaceful resolution to the conflict,” the pontiff said last month.
Global condemnation of Israel has increased amid growing reports of starvation in the Strip. The United Nations said that across Gaza, more than 5,000 children were diagnosed with malnutrition in May, though that is likely an undercount. Doctors struggle to treat the children because many supplies have run out, the UN says.
Israel has denied that a famine is taking place or that it has a policy of starvation, and recently instituted measures to increase the flow of aid. It says it has supplied enough food throughout the war and accuses Hamas of causing shortages by stealing aid and trying to control food distribution. It has also accused Hamas of systematically inflating statistics demonstrating starvation.