Pope Leo XIV pushed back Monday against criticism from President Donald Trump, framing his remarks on peace as rooted in religious teaching rather than politics.
Speaking to reporters aboard the papal plane en route to Algeria, the pope dismissed the notion that his message should be interpreted as a political challenge to the White House.
“I have no fear of the Trump administration,” the pope said.
“The message of the church, my message, the message of the Gospel: Blessed are the Peacemakers. I do not look at my role as being political, a politician,” he added.
The exchange follows a sharp escalation from Trump, who on Sunday used his Truth Social platform to attack the pope’s positions on global security, crime, and diplomacy. In a lengthy post, Trump accused Leo of undermining strong foreign policy and aligning with left-wing priorities.
“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” Trump wrote.
“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,” he continued.
Trump later expanded on those criticisms while speaking to reporters on the tarmac after arriving on Air Force One, suggesting the pope’s rhetoric was dangerously out of step with global threats.
“We don’t like a pope that’s going to say that it’s okay to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. “We don’t want a pope that says crime is okay in our cities. I don’t like it.”
“I’m not a big fan of Pope Leo. He’s a very liberal person, and he’s a man that doesn’t believe in stopping crime,” he added. “He’s a man that doesn’t think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world.”
Trump also made the claim that his presidency played a role in Leo’s rise, pointing to the pope’s American background.
“I like his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA,” Trump wrote. “He gets it, and Leo doesn’t.”
“If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican,” Trump said.
Responding Monday, Leo declined to engage directly in a political back-and-forth but made clear he viewed Trump’s criticisms as a misunderstanding of the church’s mission.
“The things that I say are certainly not meant as attacks on anyone,” he said, speaking in English. “I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing.”
He also took a subtle swipe at Trump’s preferred platform, adding, “it’s ironic, the name of the site itself; say no more,” while insisting, “I will not enter into debate.”
The pope emphasized that his comments on war, nuclear risk, and international cooperation are grounded in longstanding church teaching, not support for any government or adversary.
“To put my message on the same plane as what the president has attempted to do here, I think is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is,” Leo said. “And I’m sorry to hear that but I will continue on what I believe is the mission of the church in the world today.”
“I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems,” he added.
Framing his position as a moral imperative rather than a geopolitical stance, Leo pointed to the human cost of ongoing conflicts.
“Too many people are suffering in the world today,” he said. “Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone has to stand up and say there’s a better way.”
Leo also rejected Trump’s suggestion that his comments were aligned with Iran or any specific government.
“Leo claimed he was speaking for the church and not himself or Iran.”
The clash highlights a broader divide between the Vatican’s emphasis on diplomacy and moral authority and Trump’s more confrontational approach to foreign policy and domestic security—a divide now playing out publicly between two of the world’s most prominent figures.
Vice President Vance downplayed concerns about President Trump’s ongoing feud with Pope Leo XIV late Monday.
Vance, who is promoting his upcoming book about his conversion to Catholicism, dismissed the backlash over the exchange in an interview with Fox News.
“I don’t think that it’s particularly newsworthy, but I certainly think that in some cases it would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what’s going on in the Catholic Church and let the president of the United States stick to dictating American public policy,” he said.
