(SeaPRwire) – A strong condemnation from President Donald Trump directed at Pope Leo, the first American Pontiff, has triggered a negative reaction from Catholics in the United States.
In an extensive post on Truth Social Sunday evening, Trump appeared to criticize Leo’s recent vocal opposition to the Iran War, labeling him as “weak on crime” and suggesting he was a tool of the “radical left.”
According to Pew Research, approximately 20% of U.S. adults identify as Catholic, representing about 53 million followers.
Catholic leaders and organizations across the United States have widely denounced Trump for his outburst, although some Catholics loyal to Trump have continued to support the president.
‘Lack of respect for the faith of millions’
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, Archbishop of Newark and an associate of the late Pope Francis, stated in a message to TIME that Trump’s remarks “demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of the Holy Father’s mission and a disturbing disregard for the beliefs of millions.”
“I reiterate that Pope Leo answers to a higher authority and is committed to faithfully sharing the Gospel and advancing the Church’s mission of peace in a world desperately in need of healing,” Tobin said. “He will persist in speaking out against war and other violations of human dignity, and in advocating for genuine dialogue, as the Church’s message is rooted in the peace of Christ, not in partisan agendas.”
Tobin participated in a rare interview on 60 Minutes Sunday alongside two other Catholic leaders, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago and Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington D.C., all of whom reiterated the Pope’s calls for peace in Iran. McElroy also commented that Trump’s conflict with Iran was not a “just” war.
Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, who is part of Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, issued an unusual reprimand of Trump’s statements on Monday, urging him to apologize.
“The statements made by President Trump on Truth Social regarding the Pope were entirely inappropriate and disrespectful. They don’t contribute at all to a constructive conversation,” he stated in a post on X.
“I am very grateful for the many ways that the Trump administration has reached out to Catholics and other people of faith. It has been a high honor to serve on the Religious Liberty Commission. No President in my lifetime has shown a greater dedication to defending our first liberty. All that said, I think the President owes the Pope an apology,” he added.
Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, expressed his “disappointment” with Trump’s remarks on Sunday, noting that “Pope Leo is not his rival; nor is the Pope a politician.”
Pax Christi USA, the national Catholic peace organization, described Trump’s Sunday posts as “wildly offensive.”
“As the Holy Father said this morning, he is not a politician; those of us who are citizens of the United States, however, have a moral obligation to hold our elected officials accountable for their words and actions,” a representative for the organization stated. “It is past time for those who are closest to the president to step in and to stop enabling this grotesque behavior.”
The Pope is not ‘always and perfectly right’
However, not all Catholics sided with the Pope.
Joseph Arlinghaus, founder and president of Valor America, a conservative super PAC that invested millions in Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign, characterized the situation as “just another Monday morning.”
Arlinghaus, a devout Catholic, recalled previous popes who had criticized American wars, including Pope Benedict and John Paul II’s opposition to the Iraq War.
“I think Trump’s just speaking his mind. Trump’s not a Catholic—he’s a president,” Arlinghaus told TIME.
According to Arlinghaus, Catholics seek guidance from their religious leaders but do not always agree with everything they say. “I’m not a brainwashed disciple of Donald Trump, nor do I think that every word of the Pope is necessarily always and perfectly right.”
“That’s what prudence is all about,” Arlinghaus commented. “The Pope is doing his job, and the President is doing his.”
Pope Leo responds
The President’s extensive criticism followed Pope Leo’s denunciation last week of Trump’s threat to obliterate Iran’s “whole civilization” as “truly unacceptable.”
In response to Trump’s post on Monday, Leo stated that he had “no fear of the Trump administration, or speaking out loudly.”
“I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among states to look for just solutions to problems,” Leo told reporters while en route to Algiers.
“Too many people are suffering in the world today,” he added. “Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone has to stand up and say there’s a better way.”
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