Church, War and Peace
Stalin himself had once asked: “How many divisions does the Pope have?”
The communist dictator and warlord had reckoned just as little with the “heavenly hosts” or the Holy Spirit as the would-be dictator and warlord Donald Trump does today in the USA.
In Trump’s eyes, Pope Leo XIV is a weakling because the only ‘military’ at his disposal is the tiny Swiss Guard. But how can such a weakling dare to constantly contradict the almighty US President, who commands the greatest military power of all time? After all, Donald Trump was saved by God himself, because a bullet only grazed his ear and he remained otherwise unharmed. That is surely a true proof of God’s existence!
And that is why Trump’s vice-president, J.D. Vance – who converted to Catholicism seven years ago – now believes he must teach the Pope the ‘correct theology’: after all, the theory of the ‘just war’ has existed in Catholic theology since the days of St Augustine in the fourth century. And Vance then asks, quite innocently, whether it was not ‘just’ for the US to have defeated the godless Nazis militarily or to have used force against terrorists?
But Vance forgets that the war against Iran began in the midst of negotiations which had been described by both sides as promising. The US government is strangely twisting the ‘doctrine of just war’ and showering the Pope with anger and hatred. Blessed are the strong men? The US Department of Defence was recently renamed the ‘Department of War’. Trump’s Minister of War, Hegseth: “We are warriors, trained to kill the enemy and break his will.” And where is the “love for one’s enemies” from the Sermon on the Mount? Are climate change deniers also blessed?
The Pope may not have named Trump by name, but a cornered dog will always bark. And this time, quite rightly so. For Trump had even threatened with the monstrosity of “wiping out an entire civilisation” in Iran. In Cameroon, the Pope has now said: The world is being “devastated by a handful of tyrants”.
The latest debate on war and peace between the US government and the Vatican has not only political but also religious explosive power. A large part of the US MAGA movement (‘Make America Great Again’) still stands behind Trump, but the US Catholic bishops and much of the rest of the world, including liberals, atheists and agnostics, tend to support the Pope. The MAGA religion is a religion of power and not a religion of love as Jesus intended.
Through this conflict, Leo XIV has become something of a global conscience. Whilst politicians such as Merz or the NATO Secretary-General kowtow to Trump or remain cowardly silent, the Pope is speaking out plainly against Trump even now during his trip to Africa, preaching about the ‘sanctity of life’ but also against all other warmongers: “I am not afraid of the US government” and “Blessed are the peacemakers”.
Ironically, it is the supreme representative of the faith who has become the saviour of reason and common sense. An irony of history for all those who have always sought to separate reason and faith. Perhaps even Donald Trump will come to realise just how dangerous his compatriot in the Vatican could become to him.
Not so long ago, a pope helped to bring down a political system. Pope John Paul II played a central role in the decline of communism through his courage in upholding the Sermon on the Mount and non-violence. Now Leo XIV is the anti-Trump. This once again demonstrates the power of the Sermon on the Mount. The Pope is nine years younger than Trump and, above all, more mentally alert than the would-be Jesus in the White House. Pope Leo XIV is quite rightly addressing Trump and all warmongers such as Putin, Netanyahu and Xi: “Enough of this overconfidence and the worship of money! Enough of this display of power! Enough of war.”
Pope Leo also does not shy away from describing what Trump and his administration are currently doing for what it actually is: “blasphemy”. Bravo, and keep it up! Satirists and comedians all over the world now have their work cut out for them.
