The public dispute between the White House and the Vatican has escalated since Leo called Trump’s threat to annihilate Iranian civilization “truly unacceptable” and amplified broader criticism of the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, asserting that God does not bless those who drop bombs. The Vatican’s editorial leadership has responded by challenging the theological basis of Vance’s defense of the war, while a senior U.S. cardinal said the conflict fails the moral criteria for a just war.
ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday reinforced his call for peace and dialogue as U.S. President Donald Trump continued a week of public attacks on history’s first American-born pope, accusing him of weakness on crime and asserting that Leo owed his papacy to Trump.
Speaking to journalists en route to Cameroon, Leo said the message “the world needs to hear today” is one of peace and dialogue. He made no mention of Trump’s latest social media posts or Vice President JD Vance’s suggestion — as a Catholic convert — that Leo should “be careful” when speaking about theology.
The public dispute has escalated since Leo called Trump’s threat to annihilate Iranian civilization “truly unacceptable” and amplified broader criticism of the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, asserting that God does not bless those who drop bombs. The Vatican’s editorial leadership and a senior U.S. cardinal have since challenged the theological basis of Vance’s defense of the war.
Leo invokes St. Augustine on unity and dialogue
Leo focused his remarks on his visit the previous day to Annaba — the ancient city of Hippo in northern Algeria — where St. Augustine, the fifth-century bishop and theological cornerstone of the early church, lived and taught for more than 30 years.
“His writings, his teaching, his spirituality, his invitation to search for God and to search for truth is something that is very much needed today, a message that is very real for all of us today as believers in Jesus Christ, but for all people,” Leo said.
Leo said he chose to visit Hippo to offer the church and the world a vision of “unity among all peoples and respect for all people in spite of the differences.”
He also cited his visit to the Great Mosque of Algiers, where he stood in silent prayer.
“I think the visit to the mosque was significant to say that although we have different beliefs, we have different ways of worshiping, we have different ways of living, we can live together in peace,” Leo said. “And so I think that to promote that kind of image is something which the world needs to hear today.”
The vast majority of Algeria’s population is Muslim. Leo noted that Algerians honor St. Augustine as “one of the great sons of their land” — an attitude he said helps build bridges between Christians and Muslims.
Algeria received Leo with a full military airborne escort through its airspace, which Leo described as the first-ever papal visit to the country. He called the reception “a sign of the goodness, of the generosity, of the respect that the Algerian people and the Algerian government have wished to show to the Holy See and to myself.”
Trump posts, AI image, and war claims
Trump’s public criticisms of Leo began after the pope’s peace statements on the Iran war. Overnight, Trump posted “Not good!!!” in response to a post citing Leo’s pre-papal social media statements, which were critical of Trump. In a separate post, Trump wrote: “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.”
Earlier in the week, Trump posted and then removed an AI-generated, Christ-like image of himself that drew condemnation from many quarters, including among supporters.
Vatican challenges ‘just war’ doctrine
Vance had argued that the Catholic Church carries a long tradition of endorsing so-called “just wars” — the doctrine that warfare can be morally justified under specific conditions — to defend the U.S.-Israeli military campaign in Iran. Vatican editorial director Andrea Tornielli responded directly on Vatican Media.
Tornielli wrote that the “just war” theory was developed centuries ago, when wars were fought with swords rather than machine-guided drones. “This teaching has gradually been enriched and deepened, to the point of recognizing how increasingly difficult it is to claim that a ‘just war’ exists,” he wrote. Modern warfare poses a “reality that raises moral questions of dramatic intensity.”
“There has been a growing awareness that war is not a path to be followed,” Tornielli wrote.
U.S. Cardinal Robert McElroy, the archbishop of Washington, said the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran failed to meet the minimum criteria for the conflict to be considered morally just. Those criteria, McElroy said, would have included that the war was a response to an imminent threat, that the United States and Israel had clearly articulated their intentions, and that the anticipated benefits would outweigh the harm.