Pope Leo XIV was approaching his first year of pontificate, which he will complete next May, passing largely unnoticed in the international sphere as a global reference for all Catholics. The conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza and Donald Trump’s broadsides generated hardly any reactions from the Supreme Pontiff, who seemed enclosed in his bubble of sobriety and prudence. His style had nothing to do with that of his predecessor, Pope Jorge Bergoglio, who did make his critical voice heard and had no qualms about openly confronting political leaders.
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Everything has changed in recent days, in which a brave Pope has emerged who has not hesitated to reply to Donald Trump to tell him that he is not afraid of him. The Republican president drew him out of his silence by using Christianity to justify the war with Iran. Here, to everyone’s surprise, a Pope emerged who attacked “those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their military, economic, and political benefit.” When the Trump Administration asked for prayers for victory in the war with Iran “in the name of Jesus Christ,” Leo XIV said that Jesus “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.” And in his recent visit to Cameroon, he affirmed that “a few tyrants destroy the world.”
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The last straw was Trump’s appeal to end Persian civilization. Since that day, the Pope has changed his discourse, and in a world where few dare to criticize the Republican leader, the Pope’s interventions have received warm expressions of support, and not only from Catholics. According to information that the White House would later deny, Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby reportedly threatened a schism in a meeting held in January with Cardinal Christophe Pierre. This schism, which has hovered for years as a threat from more conservative sectors, does not seem to have deterred Leo XIV. However, given the uproar, the Pope yesterday wanted to send a message that he had no intention of polemicizing with Trump. His visit to Spain this June becomes even more interesting.
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