Pope Leo XIV said today he has “no fear of the Trump administration” and will continue to speak out after the US president criticized his comments on the war with Iran.
“I will not enter into debate. The things I say are not meant as attacks on anyone,” Pope Leo told reporters on the Papal plane. “I am inviting all people to look for ways of building bridges of peace and reconciliation, of looking for ways to avoid war any time that’s possible.”
The pontiff vowed to “continue on with what I believe is the mission of the Church in the world today.”
“I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do, what the church is here to do. We are not politicians, we don’t deal with foreign policy with the same perspective (as) he might understand it. But I do believe in the message of the Gospel, as a peacemaker.”
Trump had delivered an extraordinary broadside against Pope Leo XIV, saying he does not think the US-born leader of the Catholic church is “doing a very good job” and that he is “a very liberal person”, while also suggesting the pontiff should “stop catering to the radical left”.
In response, Leo, who arrived in Algeria on Monday as part of an 11-day tour of Africa, told reporters on the papal flight that he did not fear the Trump administration and would continue to speak out against war.
Flying back to Washington from Florida on Sunday night, Trump used a lengthy social media post to sharply criticise Leo, then continued in comments on the tarmac to reporters. “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo,” he said.
Trump’s comments came after Leo suggested over the weekend that a “delusion of omnipotence” was fuelling the US-Israel war in Iran. While it’s not unusual for popes and presidents to be at cross purposes, it is exceedingly rare for the pope to criticise a US leader – and Trump’s stinging response is equally uncommon.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” the president wrote in his post, adding: “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.” He repeated that sentiment in comments to reporters, saying: “We don’t like a pope who says it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon.”
Leo presided over an evening prayer service in St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on Saturday, the day the US and Iran began face-to-face negotiations in Pakistan during a fragile ceasefire. The pope did not mention the US or Trump by name, but his tone and message appeared to be directed at Trump and American officials, who have boasted of US military superiority and justified the war in religious terms.
During the flight to Algeria on Monday, Leo told reporters: “I am not a politician, and I do not want to enter into a debate with him [Trump]. I do not think the message of the gospel should be abused as some are doing. I continue to speak strongly against war, seeking to promote peace, dialogue, and multilateralism among states to find solutions to problems.”
Responding to a question from a US journalist, the pope said: “I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly of the message of the gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do, what the church is here to do.”
Trump’s remarks have been criticised by Italian politicians from across the spectrum. Matteo Salvini, the far-right deputy prime minister who has been a staunch supporter of Trump, said: “If anyone is working hard on the issue of peace and conflict resolution, it’s Pope Leo. Attacking the pope, a symbol of peace and a spiritual guide for billions of Catholics, doesn’t seem like a useful or intelligent thing to do.”
Matteo Renzi, the liberal former prime minister, said it was a “duty” to defend the pope. “Not only for Catholics but also, and above all, for the laity,” he said.
“It’s been centuries since we’ve seen such blatant aggression [against a pope],” Renzi said, describing the pontiff as a “bridge builder”, in contrast to Trump, who he described as “a destroyer of relationships and civilisations”.
In a post on social media, the far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, praised Leo for his trip to Africa, where her government has formed strategic relationships, mainly aimed at curbing irregular immigration, and his role in “fostering the return of peace”, but did not mention the attack against him by Trump.
Leo’s criticisms of war have intensified since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran began. In ones of his harshest condemnations, he said God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them”.
This was seen as a rebuke to the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth,who said he prayed for “overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy”.
Leo has also referenced an Old Testament passage from Isaiah, saying that “even though you make many prayers, I will not listen – your hands are full of blood”.
Before the ceasefire, when Trump warned of mass strikes against Iranian power plants and other infrastructure and that “an entire civilization will die tonight”, Leo described such sentiments as “truly unacceptable”.
In his social media post on Sunday night, however, Trump went far beyond the war in Iran in criticising Leo. The president wrote: “I don’t want a Pope who thinks it’s terrible that America attacked Venezuela, a Country that was sending massive amounts of Drugs into the United States.” That was a reference to the Trump administration ousting the Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in January.
“I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do,” Trump added, referencing his 2024 election victory.
Trump also suggested in the post that Leo only got his position “because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J Trump”.
“If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” Trump claimed, adding: “Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician. It’s hurting him very badly and, more importantly, it’s hurting the Catholic Church!”
In his subsequent comments to reporters, Trump remained highly critical, saying: “I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime I guess,” adding: “He’s a very liberal person.”
In the 2024 election, Trump won 55% of Catholic voters, according to AP VoteCast, an extensive survey of the electorate. But Trump’s administration also has close ties to conservative evangelical Protestant leaders and has claimed heavenly endorsement for the war on Iran.
Hegseth has urged Americans to pray for victory “in the name of Jesus Christ”. When Trump was asked whether he thought God approved of the war, he said: “I do, because God is good – because God is good and God wants to see people taken care of.”
