President Donald Trump took to social media and slammed Pope Leo XIV, calling him “weak” on crime and “terrible” on foreign policy. He also shared an AI-generated image of himself depicted as Jesus. The posts came in the late hours of the night and quickly drew widespread attention.
The tension between the White House and the Vatican appears to have grown after the Pope publicly criticized Trump. The Pope called Trump’s warning that an “entire civilisation will die tonight,” said in reference to Iran, “unacceptable.” According to The Independent, the Pope also suggested that a “delusion of omnipotence” is driving the conflict between the United States and Iran.
Trump responded by claiming that Catholic Church leadership was “arresting priests, ministers, and everybody else” during the Covid pandemic. He also said he prefers the Pope’s brother, Louis, stating: “I like his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA. He gets it, and Leo doesn’t!” Trump also said he does not want a Pope who thinks it is okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon.
Trump’s claim that he is the reason Leo became Pope is hard to ignore
Trump went further, claiming that the Church chose Leo specifically because of him. He wrote on Truth Social: “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.”
He then told the Pope to stop catering to the “Radical Left” and to focus on being a “Great Pope” rather than a politician. Just 40 minutes after that post, Trump uploaded an AI-generated image showing him as Jesus, bathed in golden light, placing a hand on a sleeping man’s forehead.
The image also included a nurse, a praying woman, people in military uniforms, a large U.S. flag, two bald eagles, and three military planes in the background. This came at a time when Trump had also been posting rants mocking dead Iranian leaders while JD Vance was in the middle of peace talks.
The backlash came quickly, even from within Trump’s own circle. Former Trump loyalist Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote on X: “On Orthodox Easter, President Trump attacked the Pope because the Pope is rightly against Trump’s war in Iran and then he posted this picture of himself as if he is replacing Jesus. This comes after last week’s post of his evil tirade on Easter and then threatening to kill an entire civilization. I completely denounce this and I’m praying against it!”
The Catholic Church also responded. Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, released a statement saying he was “disheartened” by the President’s words. He clarified that the Pope is not a rival or a politician, but the “Vicar of Christ” who speaks from the truth of the Gospel.
Separately, reports have emerged about growing tensions between the White House and the Vatican at an official level. During a meeting with Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the former Holy See ambassador to the U.S., officials reportedly complained about a speech the Pope gave. There were even references made to the 14th-century Avignon Papacy, which many viewed as a veiled threat.
Some reports also alleged that the Pentagon threatened the Vatican with military force. The broader U.S.-Iran situation remains unresolved, with nuclear deal negotiations breaking down in Pakistan and Trump signaling he may be ready to impose a naval blockade. According to Mediaite, Vice President JD Vance, when asked about the Vatican threats in Budapest, said he had not seen the reporting and wanted to learn more before commenting.
Published: Apr 13, 2026 09:00 am