President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of Pope Leo XIV ahead of a Vatican visit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 7.
In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the first American-born pope was helping Iran and making the world less safe with his comments about respecting immigrants.
“The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said in the interview on May 3. “And I don’t think that’s very good. I think he’s endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.”
Pope Leo XIV responded to Trump’s criticism by accusing him of misrepresenting his views, adding that the Catholic Church had long opposed all nuclear weapons.
Pope Leo XIV, who holds the distinction of being the first American to assume the papacy, has become increasingly outspoken regarding the US-Israel war with Iran. In April, he publicly rebuked Trump's inflammatory rhetoric and warnings directed at the Iranian people, characterizing it as "truly unacceptable." The pope's rebuke came in response to Trump's earlier declaration that "a whole civilization will die tonight."
But this wasn't the first time a president clashed with a religious leader. Click on to find out more.