Pope Leo has said he will keep speaking out against war after facing scathing criticism from Donald Trump who branded the pontiff “weak”.
The US president, in a lengthy social media post, demanded that the head of the Catholic Church “focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician”.
But the Pope has indicated he will continue to “stand up and say there’s a better way” and that he is “not afraid of the Trump administration”, although he also said he did not intend to “get into a debate” with Mr Trump.
Mr Trump has accused the Pope, who leads the world’s estimated 1.4 billion Catholics, of being “Weak on Crime, Weak on Nuclear Weapons” and said he should “stop catering to the Radical Left”.
The president also said the pontiff should be “thankful” to have become Pope last year, suggesting the first North American leader of the Catholic Church was chosen as someone who could “deal with” Mr Trump.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, where he also posted an image of himself as a god or Jesus-like figure, the president wrote: “Leo should be thankful because, as everyone knows, he was a shocking surprise.
“He wasn’t on any list to be Pope, and was only put there by the Church 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.”
Doubling down on his remarks, Mr Trump – who was among world leaders in attendance at Pope Francis’s funeral almost a year ago – also told reporters: “I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”
The pontiff has said he does not want to “get into a debate” with Mr Trump, adding that the message of the Gospel was being “abused” by some people.
He told reporters onboard the papal plane as he embarked on a 10-day tour in Africa: “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 said “too many people are suffering in the world today” and “too many innocent people are being killed”.
He added: “And I think someone has to stand up and say there’s a better way.”
The Pope also said religious leaders “are not politicians” and “do not look at foreign policy from the same perspective that he (Mr Trump) may have”.
He told reporters: “I’m not afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for.”
In his Easter message earlier this month, the pontiff had strongly criticised war, calling on “those who have weapons (to) lay them down”.
He said: “Let those who have the power to unleash wars, choose peace. Not a peace imposed by force, but through dialogue. Not with the desire to dominate others, but to encounter them.”
He said there now appeared to be a sense of indifference “to the deaths of thousands of people… to the repercussions of hatred and division that conflicts sow… to the economic and social consequences they produce”.
The leader of Catholics in England and Wales backed the Pope.
Archbishop of Westminster Richard Moth said: “We continue to support his unstinting calls for peace and reconciliation across all areas of conflict.”
The Archbishop of Southwark, John Wilson, also offered support, saying the Pope had “made clear, we cannot stand by and allow the message of the Gospel to be abused”.
He said while bishops “are not politicians, nor statesmen, nor do we pretend to have all the answers”, they are “clear that God demands peace”.
He added: “Please join me in praying for peace and for Pope Leo XIV. May we all be as courageous as our Holy Father in proclaiming the truth that God demands peace.”
