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2026 Holy See–United States rift

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2026 Holy See–United States rift
Part of the second presidency of Donald Trump
US president Donald Trump
DateJanuary 2026–present
Caused byIdeological disagreements regarding the second Trump administration's domestic and foreign polices.
MediumPress statements and social media posts.
StatusOngoing
Parties

Since January 2026, a diplomatic rift has emerged between the United States and the Holy See, which governs Vatican City and the Catholic Church, stemming from Pope Leo XIV's opposition to US foreign policy and military action in Venezuela and Iran under US president Donald Trump.

Leo XIV and American Catholic officials had a history of criticism of Trump and the Republican-led U.S. Congress over the treatments of immigrants under the immigration policy of the second Trump administration and benefit cuts such as from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the 2025 United States federal government shutdown. Condemnations and increased tensions grew among Vatican officials amid an increase in ambitions of territorial expansion and nationalist policies under the Trump administration, including the Greenland crisis, the 2026 Cuban crisis, the halting of some foreign aid, and the US immigration enforcement operation Operation Metro Surge.

Following an allegedly hostile US meeting with a Vatican ambassador, tensions escalated with the onset of the 2026 Iran war on 28 February, with the Trump administration and the Holy See engaging in a verbal feud over the conflict's moral legitimacy; Trump has demanded that Leo refrain from criticizing US policies and went as far as to allege the illegitimacy of his election as pope. Observers have referred to the nature of the rift, between a political leader and a pope, as unprecedented in modern history.

Background

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The United States and the Holy See. The Holy See that governs Vatican City is led by the Pope, who is the leader of the Catholic Church.

The United States and Catholicism

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See also: Know Nothing and Catholicism in the Trump administrations

Catholicism has historically been viewed with suspicion by some American nativist groups, contributing to periods of social and political tension in the 1850s, 1880s, and 1920s, including from groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and the Know Nothings. In a turn from past elections,[1] Leo became the first American pope, elected in May 2025.[2][3] Trump reacted positively to the election, declaring that this was a great honor.[2] Both vice president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio had also met Leo in May 2025, the former congratulating him for becoming the new leader of the Holy See.[4] Prior to the rift, Leo was not known for political confrontation, in contrast to his predecessor Pope Francis; by the end of 2025, however, he criticized the Trump administration's treatment of undocumented migrants and Trump's hostile comments towards European countries.[5] Before becoming pope, on his account on the social media platform Twitter, he criticized Trump and Vance's policies, especially over immigration.[6] American Catholic bishops had been repeatedly critical of events resulting in the cuts to healthcare, food coverage, and clean energy tax credits under Trump and the Republican-led U.S. Congress such as during the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the 2025 United States federal government shutdown.[7][8] In February 2026, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops filed an amicus brief against Trump, asking the US Supreme Court to strike down Executive Order 14160, which called for ending birthright citizenship in the United States.[9]

Favorability ratings

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Pope Leo is viewed favorably within the US: among 14 prominent US figures in 2025, he was polled as the most favorable, being viewed favorably by 57% and unfavorably by 11%,[10] NBC News also gave Leo a +34 net favorability rating in a 2026 poll, compared with Trump's -12.[11] This has led some observers to claim that Trump is allegedly "jealous" of Leo's popularity as a reason for his attacks.[12]

American expansionism under Donald Trump

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Main article: American expansionism under Donald Trump

Since January 2025, Trump had expressed interest in expanding US territory and influence outside US territories, remarking about using "economic force" to convert Canada into the 51st state and refusing to rule out military force against Greenland and Panama. Such interests from Trump in his second presidency, which continued into 2026 and had been extended to other countries like Venezuela, have been criticized as expansionist.[13][14] Multiple authors have argued that Trump's interests in the likes of Greenland, Venezuela, and Iran in 2026 follow a pattern of growing imperialist and expansionist tendencies from the American president.[15][16][17]

In January 2025, three US cardinals urged the Trump administration to use a moral compass in foreign policy, saying that "threats of acquiring Greenland and cuts in foreign aid risk bringing vast suffering instead of promoting peace."[18] Cardinals Blase Cupich, Robert McElroy, and Joseph W. Tobin said in their statement that "military action must be seen only as a last resort in extreme situations, not a normal instrument of national policy."[19] Cupich further explained his reasoning: "As pastors entrusted with the teaching of our people, we cannot stand by while decisions are made that condemn millions to lives trapped permanently at the edge of existence."[20] Less than a week after US action in Venezuela and Trump's goal of acquiring Greenland, Leo said, "War is back in vogue and a zeal for war is spreading."[21] Archbishop Timothy Broglio, head of the US Archdiocese for the Military Services said that US military personnel could disobey an "immoral order to invade Greenland."[22]

Events

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January 2026 meeting

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Following the United States military intervention in Venezuela on 3 January, Pope Leo and Vatican officials expressed concern over the Trump administration's actions;[23] the pope said on 9 January that a diplomacy of dialogue was being replaced by "a diplomacy based on force".[23][24] His comments followed Trump's threats against Mexico, Colombia, and Iran along with annexation threats against Greenland.[25] On 22 January, officials of the US DOD hosted French cardinal Christophe Pierre, at that time the Holy See's ambassador to the US; The Washington Post described the meeting as "atypical", noting that church officials rarely meet with the DOD.[23] On 29 January, during an ICE and CBP operation in Minneapolis known as Operation Metro Surge, which resulted in the deaths of two civilian protesters, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, described the violence as "unacceptable" and called for peaceful solutions to the situation.[26] On 1 February, the pope expressed "great concern" about the 2026 Cuban crisis, urging for dialogue between the United States and Cuba.[27]

An April 2026 report from The Free Press said that US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby had summoned Pierre to a closed door "lecture" at the Pentagon.[28][29] According to the report, Colby, along with others, allegedly used the meeting to criticize Leo's previous statements from 9 January and told Pierre that the US "has the military power to do whatever it wants" and that the "Church had better take its side". Another official allegedly invoked the Avignon Papacy, a period during the 1300s where the French monarchy used its military power to control the papacy.[28] The Financial Times and independent journalist Christopher Hale likewise reported that "Avignon" was invoked, and "some Vatican officials" reportedly understood it "to be a military threat against the Vatican".[30] The Free Press's report also said Leo may not visit the US through the duration of Trump's presidency.[29]

By April, both the DOD and the Vatican issued statements stating that reports claiming an adversarial meeting were untrue.[5][31] Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic, said he was unsure what actually occurred and wanted to talk with Pierre about it.[23] One Vatican official previously characterized it as "unusual", where the distance "is evident and clear" on both sides; another church official said it did not have threats, or a mention of the Avignon Papacy, just the Vatican expressing its views to the US.[23]

2026 Iran war

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Further information: 2026 Iran war
Trump's 12 April post on Truth Social condemning Leo[32]

Origins

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The rift between the US government and the papacy escalated after 28 February 2026, when the US and Israel began a war against Iran, which Leo condemned.[33][3]

US defense secretary Pete Hegseth has repeatedly framed the war effort as divinely ordained, with Leo repeatedly pushing back against this idea.[34]

On 4 March, Parolin warned about the path to "multipolarism" paved by the "erosion of international law" due to the replacement of "force of law" by the "law of force". He also expressed great sorrow for the people of the Middle East, including of Christian communities, being plunged into war.[35]

On 8 March, US cardinal Blase Cupich, who is close to the pope, condemned a US government video titled "Justice the American way" that depicted attacks on Iran mixed with Hollywood film clips, saying "a real war with real death and real suffering [is] being treated like it’s a video game".[36]

On Palm Sunday, 29 March, the pope stated that God "does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war," quoting Isaiah 1:15: "Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen — your hands are full of blood."[2] Then on Easter Sunday, 5 April, he stated: "Let those who have weapons lay them down! 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!"[33]

On 7 April, Trump issued a threat towards Iran, stating that the "whole [Iranian] civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again", unless Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz. Leo condemned the threat as "unacceptable".[33] On 11 April, while speaking at a peace vigil in Vatican City, Leo stated that a "delusion of omnipotence" was driving global instability and called for diplomacy to be prioritized over military escalation.[3]

Escalation

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AI-generated image image of Trump as Jesus posted on Truth Social, which was deleted shortly after

The next day, 12 April, Trump condemned Leo, accusing him of siding with Iran, demanding he stop criticizing US policy, and saying he should not be involved in political matters.[3] He also suggested Leo was illegitimately elected and was only installed by the Catholic Church as an American counterweight to him.[34] Trump additionally accused Leo of being a "very liberal person" who was "catering to the radical left", "weak on crime", and "terrible for foreign policy".[37] In response, priest Antonio Spadaro, under-secretary of the Vatican's Dicastery of Culture and Education, said Trump's statements reflected his "impotence" in the face of the Vatican's "moral voice" against the war. At the same time, three US cardinals made a joint television appearance to speak out against the war, saying it was not justified by Catholic teaching.[3] Furthermore, Trump also published on Truth Social an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus,[3] which generated strong backlash from many American Catholic organizations and even some Evangelical groups.[38]

On 13 April, Leo said he had "no fear of the Trump administration" and said he did not "want to get into a ⁠debate with him", but then added: "I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing".[39][2] Leo 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."[39] Meanwhile, Vance stated that Leo should stay out of American affairs but also said he was not worried about the feud, and that it was natural that both parties would "disagree on substantive questions from time to time".[40] Trump the same day refused to apologize to Leo, citing disagreements on foreign policy.[41]

On 14 April, Trump condemned Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, after she defended the pope and called Trump's remarks "unacceptable", saying, "I thought she was brave, I was wrong."[42] On the same day, Vance stated that the pope should be careful when talking on theological matters and that sometimes war is good, specifically citing the Second World War where Allied forces liberated the Nazi concentration camps.[43] US bishop James Massa said that Vance and other critics were erroneously interpreting Leo's comments, stating that the pope's condemnation of "those who wage war" was referring to aggressor parties, not parties that use violence in self-defense. Massa said that while Catholic teaching permits for war in certain circumstances, recent military actions of the US did not fit such criteria.[44]

Late on 14 April, Trump posted to Truth Social, "Will someone please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed, protesters in the last two months, and that for Iran to have a Nuclear Bomb is absolutely unacceptable. Thank you for your attention to this matter. AMERICA IS BACK!!!"[45][46]

Executive actions, statements, and security incident

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On 16 April, the Trump administration cut funding to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami, in particular shutting down a program that assisted the children of undocumented migrants as part of a broader scaleback of federal funding for such programs. Meanwhile, US bishops released a statement affirming that Leo was speaking as the representative of Jesus and that his comments are in line with Catholic teaching about war being justified only "in self-defense, once all peace efforts have failed".[47][48] Also, an unidentified person made a fake bomb threat to the home of Leo's brother, John Prevost, in New Lenox, Illinois.[47][49] Trump said to reporters that it was necessary for Leo to understand that Iran was a "threat to the world", but Trump also said that "I want him to say what he wants, but I can disagree."[50] He also said that "I have nothing against the pope. His brother is MAGA all the way."[51]

Leo, in a homily to during a visit to Cameroon, stated the world was "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants" and those manipulating "the very name of God" for their own gain by "dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth".[50][52] Leo later said that his speech was written two weeks ago, "well before the president ever commented on myself and ​on the message of peace that I am promoting."[53]

On 18 April, both Leo and JD Vance argued that the media has misinterpreted the rift.[54] Leo told media outlets that "There's been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects... Much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary, trying to interpret what has been said." Leo added that it was not in his "interest at all" to debate Trump. Vance soon responded, writing on X, "I am grateful to Pope Leo for saying this. While the media narrative constantly gins up conflict–and yes, real disagreements have happened and will happen–the reality is often much more complicated... He will be in our prayers, and I hope that we'll be in his".

Reescalation

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On 5 May, ahead of Rubio's scheduled visit to the Vatican, Trump accused Leo of "endangering a lot of Catholics" because of his supposed stance on allowing Iran to have nuclear weapons. The US ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch expected "frank" dialogue between Rubio and Pope Leo at the Apostolic Palace but rejected the idea of a "deep rift" between the US and Holy See. Pope Leo responded to Trump's accusations, arguing that he had no such stance on Iran's nuclear program.[55][56] The same day at a press conference, Marco Rubio denied that his scheduled Vatican trip was meant to ease the Trump administration's tensions with the Holy See but defended Trump's feud with Leo regarding the Iran war, claiming that reports of Trump's direct statement on Leo "endangering" Catholics was an inaccurate reading from them and echoing implications that Leo supports Iran having nuclear weapons.[57] According to analysts and insiders reporting to Reuters, the Vatican's statement after Leo's meeting with Rubio, which pledged better relations but did not mention existing "good relations" between the US and Holy See, implied "a recognition of unprecedented tensions" between the two.[58]

Analysis

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Historical precedents

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Marco Politi, a long time Vatican observer and author, stated: "You have to jump back to the Middle Ages when kings and emperors were shouting against the pope in Rome and calling him false. There is just no other recent example like this."[2] Similarly, academic Andrew Chestnut stated, "I cannot think of any parallels, at least coming from Western Christian majority countries, of such pointed and public attacks on the Pope."[59] Professor Robert Orsi said Trump's exchange with Leo was "unprecedented", and commented, "never in U.S. history has this happened."[60] Miles Pattenden, writing for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, compared the confrontation between Trump and Leo to that of Napoleon and Pope Pius VII.[61]

Potential impact on Catholic American voters

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Some observers have stated that conservative White American Catholics, a core group of Republican Party voters, may be alienated by Trump's confrontation with Leo. Elise Ann Allen, author of a biography on the pope, stated: "[Trump] is realizing that Leo is emerging as a stronger global figure, and he's trying to remind moderate Catholics why they voted for him. But outbursts like this could backfire as they could further alienate the moderate Catholics on the fence about him. If he's trying to win back Catholic voters, this will only help Leo's cause, not his."[2] Chestnut stated Trump's claim that Leo was installed as pope for political reasons is particularly risky as many Catholics believe the Holy Spirit guides the conclave process.[59]

Nuclear issue

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Trump has claimed that Leo supports Iran having a nuclear weapon; however, in a March 5 homily, Leo said, "May the nuclear threat never again dictate the future of humanity," and leaders must "halt the arms race."[62] In June 2025, Leo said he wanted to build a "lasting peace" that would be "free from the nuclear threat" and also said the "temptation to have recourse to powerful and sophisticated weapons needs to be rejected".[62] On 16 April, when speaking to reporters, Trump said, "I'm not fighting with him. The pope made a statement. He says Iran can have a nuclear weapon. I say Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon."[63]

Reactions

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Within the United States

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  • USCCB: President Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City said he was "disheartened" over Trump's comments towards Leo, and said "Pope Leo is not [Trump's] rival; nor is the Pope a politician. He is the Vicar of Christ who speaks from the truth of the Gospel and for the care of souls." Bishop Robert Barron, a prominent Catholic prelate and theologian who has served on Trump's Religious Liberty Commission, said Trump's statements were disrespectful, while also asking that both parties choose structured dialogue over public confrontation.[64]
  • Democratic Party: The party issued a statement saying Trump was "picking fights with the Catholic Church and the pope instead of doing anything to make your life better, lower the cost of living, or bring our troops home. America deserves better."[64]
  • Republican Party: Mike Johnson, speaker of the United States House of Representatives, said that he was "taken a little bit aback" by Leo's comments and defended Trump, arguing that the pope was welcome to share his opinion on politics but should expect "some political response".[65] U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district Troy Nehls said Leo should "stay out of politics", and "we didn't elect the pope to be the president."[65]

International

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  • Brazil Brazil: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized Trump's behavior towards the papacy and said everyone should have the right to speak freely without fear.[66]
  • Cameroon Cameroon: Diplomat Blaise Bebey Abong expressed shock, stating that the "verbal recklessness against an institution as revered as the papacy" was without precedent in modern times, adding that the dispute would damage the perception of Trump in Central Africa.[67]
  • Iran Iran: President Masoud Pezeshkian condemned Trump's attacks on Pope Leo and also stated that Trump's AI-generated image of himself as Jesus was "a desecration" of "the prophet of peace and brotherhood".[3] Its embassy in Tajikistan posted an AI-generated video based on Trump's now-deleted image post of Jesus punching Trump in the face and plunging him into a fiery pit on X; it was one of several videos posted by Iranian embassies that mocked Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid the 2026 Iran war.[68]
  • Italy Italy: Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Trump's attacks on Leo were "unacceptable" and said it was "right and normal that the Pope calls for peace and condemns all forms of war".[34] Senior Italian politicians, for whom Catholics are a key constituency, also made statements backing the pope.[69]
  • Philippines Philippines: Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Episcopal Commission on Public Affairs chairman Archbishop Ricardo Baccay manifested his full support for Pope Leo XIV, stating that the Pope's statements about Trump were not political but rather based in the Gospel. He also sent his prayers for Donald Trump.[70] Meanwhile, Cebu Archbishop Alberto Uy expressed his sadness on Trump's remarks against Pope Leo XIV, justifying that the Holy Father purely displays "the conscience of the world."[71]
  • Spain Spain: Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez stated: "while some sow the world with wars, Leo XIV sows peace, with bravery and courage."[64]
  • United Kingdom United Kingdom: Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally has declared her support for Leo, stating "I stand with my brother in Christ, his holiness Pope Leo XIV, in his courageous call for a kingdom of peace." and, while not addressing Trump by name, went on to say “We must also urge all those entrusted with political authority to pursue every possible peaceful and just means of resolving conflict.”[72]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Barb, Amandine (2025), "Catholic Patterns in the American Left", in Gayte, Marie; Chelini-Pont, Blandine; Rozell, Mark J. (eds.), Catholics and U.S. Politics After the 2024 Elections: Trump Captures the "Swing Vote", Palgrave Studies in Religion, Politics, and Policy, Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland, pp. 27–45, doi:10.1007/978-3-031-92362-3_2, ISBN 978-3-031-92362-3, retrieved 2026-04-17
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