$\"Pope$

Vice President JD Vance publicly thanked Pope Leo XIV on Saturday after the first U.S.-born pontiff clarified that he has no interest in engaging in a public debate with President Donald Trump over the ongoing conflict with Iran.

The comments came during Pope Leo’s papal visit to Africa.

While aboard a flight from Cameroon to Angola on Saturday, the pope addressed media coverage of a speech he delivered in Cameroon, criticizing those who “manipulate religion” for political and military gain. He stated the remarks had been prepared two weeks earlier, well before President Trump’s public comments on the pope’s message of peace.

“And yet, as it happens, it was looked at as if I was trying to debate, again, the president, which is not my interest at all,” Pope Leo said. “So, we go on the journey. We continue proclaiming the gospel message.”

WATCH:

NEW: Pope Leo downplays tensions with President Trump, addressing a “narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects.”
He says it is “not in my interest at all” to debate the president and will keep preaching a message of peace.pic.twitter.com/DwG6BiUsaP
— Fox News (@FoxNews)April 18, 2026

Trump had branded the pope as “soft on crime” and “very liberal” after he had made comments against war.

Reporter: Why did you attack Pope Leo?
Trump: I don’t think he’s doing a very good job. He likes crime I guess. We don’t like a pope who says it’s ok to have a nuclear weapon. We don’t want a pope that says crime is ok. I am not a fan of Pope Leo.pic.twitter.com/cj3oh1jSIL
— Acyn (@Acyn)April 13, 2026

Vance, a Catholic who met with Pope Leo at the Vatican last May shortly after his election, responded directly 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.
Pope Leo preaches the gospel, as he should, and that will inevitably mean he…https://t.co/SxWCKyhDSj
— JD Vance (@JDVance)April 18, 2026

“While the media narrative constantly gins up conflict–and yes, real disagreements have happened and will happen–the reality is often much more complicated,” Vance wrote on X.

The vice president added that because the pope “preaches the gospel, as he should,” that would “inevitably mean he offers his opinions on moral issues of the day.”

“The President–and the entire administration–work to apply those moral principles in a messy world,” Vance continued. “He will be in our prayers, and I hope that we’ll be in his.”

Trump also told reporters he was not “fighting with the pope” and that he had a “right to disagree,” while maintaining he would not apologize.

The postVP JD Vance Thanks Pope Leo XIV for Rejecting Media ‘Debate’ Narrative with Trump, ‘He Will Be in Our Prayers, and I Hope That We’ll Be in His’appeared first onThe Gateway Pundit.

",{"_307":251,"_308":338,"_309":339},"3f4d9f1d-ce63-423b-a13c-d80add7e2e6e",{"_27":338,"_40":340,"_253":341,"_42":342,"_278":343,"_314":-5,"_29":285,"_315":344,"_317":345,"_271":346,"_80":-5,"_82":118,"_232":347,"_307":251,"_335":360},"\"Grateful\": Vance Thanks Pope for Walking Back Trump Criticisms","Vice President JD Vance expressed gratitude to Pope Leo for clarifying his criticisms concerning President Trump and the war with Iran. The Pope stated his comments were taken out of context and not intended as a direct debate with Trump. This clarification comes after President Trump had previously criticized the Pope as \"weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy.\"","Vice President JD Vance has said he is “grateful” to Pope Leo for clarifying his criticisms of President Trump and the war with Iran","https://images.citizenmedia.network/4632bbb0-d77f-445b-b22a-148e3e52f26c/iw/2026/04/INFOWARS-IMAGES-2026-04-19T133920.616.jpg","2026-04-19T16:40:00","https://www.infowars.com/posts/grateful-vance-thanks-pope-for-walking-back-trump-criticisms","politics",{"_27":348,"_235":349,"_134":322,"_80":350,"_265":357,"_266":358,"_268":359},"8f846bb183d219cb99425da9b5ecdf4be0ff6d7ecd9f1b978252edab15c2b26f","c0ea45fe31895876f27073532534b505faeb6b3f03341f75ad8c307c407e3e7fa140ceb29afd566d0245f0668e99ebdeaca2c8eb3b75701d4d462859c7b23151",[351,352,353,355,356],[271,340],[44,343],[327,354,39,329],"30023:4f2df85ae6634a27fe62c8f9ad1cf1dff86189e8c5b8ddb3c8bcbc22c01b1523:3f4d9f1d-ce63-423b-a13c-d80add7e2e6e",[262,263],[137,357,39],"4f2df85ae6634a27fe62c8f9ad1cf1dff86189e8c5b8ddb3c8bcbc22c01b1523","\"Grateful\": Vance Thanks Pope for Walking Back Trump Criticisms\nVice President JD Vance has said he is “grateful” to Pope Leo for clarifying his criticisms of President Trump and the war with Iran\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqnedlpdwvc62yllx9j8e45w0rhlcvxy733dcmkeu309uytqpk9frqqjrxe35vsukvvty943k2d3n956ryvmz94snzvmr94jrsvrpv3jrwefjv5mx20envyy ",1776634737,"Vice President JD Vance has said he is “grateful” to Pope Leo for clarifying his criticisms of President Trump and the war with Iran.\n\nVance offered his thanks in a post on X, in response to a public statement from the Pope that it was “not in my interest at all” to debate President Trump, and that statements he had made had been taken out of context.\n\n“I am grateful to Pope Leo for saying this,” Vice President Vance wrote.\n\n“While the media narrative constantly gins up conflict–and yes, real disagreements have happened and will happen–the reality is often much more complicated. Pope Leo preaches the gospel, as he should, and that will inevitably mean he offers his opinions on the moral issues of the day. The President–and the entire administration–work to apply those moral principles in a messy world.\n\n“He will be in our prayers, and I hope that we’ll be in his.”\n\nThe Pope made his comments to reporters during his recent visit to Angola.\n\nHe explained that “comments he made two days earlier in Cameroon” had actually been “prepared two weeks ago,” suggesting they were not a direct commentary on President Trump’s actions.\n\nThe Pope had said the “world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants,” and that “We must make a decisive change of course—a true conversion—that will lead us in the opposite direction, onto a sustainable path rich in human fraternity”\n\nThe Pope also added that “reporting about comments he has made so far during his Africa tour ‘has not been accurate in all its aspects.’”\n\nLast weekend, in response to apparent criticism from the Pope, President Trump slammed him as “WEAK on crime, and terrible for foreign policy.”\n\n“Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” Trump posted on Truth Social.\n\n“He talks about ‘fear’ of the Trump Administration, but doesn’t mention the FEAR that the Catholic Church, and all other Christian Organizations, had during COVID when they were arresting priests, ministers, and everybody else, for holding Church Services, even when outside, and being ten and even twenty feet apart.’”",{"_307":251,"_308":362,"_309":363},"95d39df5-77d7-41d7-bd5f-8e1a98f296a9",{"_27":362,"_40":364,"_253":365,"_42":366,"_278":367,"_314":-5,"_29":285,"_315":368,"_317":369,"_271":346,"_80":-5,"_82":118,"_232":370,"_307":251,"_335":383},"Vance 'grateful' to Pope Leo for clearing up feud with Trump","Vice President JD Vance expressed gratitude for Pope Leo XIV's statement that downplayed recent tensions between the Vatican and President Donald Trump. Pope Leo clarified that a media narrative fueled the conflict, not his intentions, and that his remarks in Africa were pre-written. Vance acknowledged that disagreements happen but emphasized the complexity of applying moral principles in a difficult world.","Vice President JD Vance praised Pope Leo XIV’s recent statement downplaying the tensions between the Vatican and President Donald Trump after a week of back-and-forth sparring.","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/image-collage-5fzuc2i4r-1776565727106.jpg?1776551986&resize=1200,683","2026-04-19T02:56:28","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/4534825/vance-pope-leo-trump-feud/",{"_27":371,"_235":372,"_134":322,"_80":373,"_265":380,"_266":381,"_268":382},"3c8004841ff27772c6745c3d39c5d0309b0b8df8e7b178caa90ef5433af88d78","d107be33f7e709ec1438e4131aadcb8b163cde18506cb0c2ef36e00dad4e27d328d0f5060f629209770347c98a515a81796b58546bc4c13c8a201b3c6b5e72d6",[374,375,376,378,379],[271,364],[44,367],[327,377,39,329],"30023:273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26:95d39df5-77d7-41d7-bd5f-8e1a98f296a9",[262,263],[137,380,39],"273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26","Vance 'grateful' to Pope Leo for clearing up feud with Trump\nVice President JD Vance praised Pope Leo XIV’s recent statement downplaying the tensions between the Vatican and President Donald Trump after a week of back-and-forth sparring.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqfe73wul6ap9cqm5lza27vgyl3222e9dejsfzctf9htqeypmwt3xqqjrjdtyxvukge3495mnweph956rzeph943xgdtx95ux2vtp8yuxvv3exesnjft2saf ",1776620283,"Vice President JD Vance praised Pope Leo XIV’s recent statement downplaying the tensions between the Vatican and President Donald Trump after a week of back-and-forth sparring.\n\nLeo said on Saturday that it is “not my interest at all” to debate Trump over issues like the Iran war, where the two hold sharply differing views. He stressed that an inaccurate media “narrative” has instead fueled the tension, citing his speech in Africa on Thursday where he warned the “world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants.” While those remarks came just after Trump’s rebukes, Leo clarified the speech was actually written two weeks ago, long before Trump’s criticism of him.\n\nVance responded to the pope’s remarks on Saturday night, saying he was “grateful” for the clarification.\n\n“While the media narrative constantly gins up conflict — and yes, real disagreements have happened and will happen — the reality is often much more complicated,” Vance posted on X. “Pope Leo preaches the gospel, as he should, and that will inevitably mean he offers his opinions on the moral issues of the day. The President — and the entire administration — work to apply those moral principles in a messy world.”\n\n“He will be in our prayers, and I hope that we’ll be in his,” he concluded.\n\nVance’s comments come after Trump publicly bashed Leo as “WEAK on Crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy.”\n\nThe remarks, as well as a now-deleted post depicting Trump as Jesus Christ, led to backlash from both sides of the aisle.\n\nVance, a Catholic, rushed to Trump’s side, even warning Leo to “be careful” when discussing theology.\n\nThe tensions have simmered for now. In dismissing them on Saturday, Leo, who is on an 11-day trip in Africa, vowed to continue to preach the gospel.",{"_307":251,"_308":385,"_309":386},"b6d2a528-9b15-44f2-8b44-28c4ddb126f7",{"_27":385,"_40":387,"_253":388,"_42":389,"_278":390,"_314":-5,"_29":285,"_315":391,"_317":392,"_271":346,"_80":-5,"_82":117,"_232":393,"_307":251,"_335":406},"Pope Leo says he was not ‘trying to debate’ Trump over US attack on Iran","Pope Leo XIV stated that debating US President Donald Trump about the Iran war is not in his interest, and he will continue to preach the Gospel message of peace. He clarified that his preaching is not directed at Trump but reflects the broader Gospel message, addressing inaccuracies in media narratives about his statements. Trump had criticized Leo's peace message, falsely claiming the Pope suggested Iran could possess nuclear weapons, while Leo has spoken against nuclear weapons and denounced threats to annihilate Iranian civilization.","Pontiff says that despite ‘certain narrative that has not been accurate’, he will continue to preach message of peace","https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/a823a730ca85ec86b0ae29243ff7126b2da67845/683_0_3413_2731/master/3413.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&precrop=40:21,offset-x50,offset-y0&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=7bd33e2e2be366b801339b028ab2fd6a","2026-04-18T19:06:14","https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/18/pope-leo-donald-trump-iran",{"_27":394,"_235":395,"_134":322,"_80":396,"_265":403,"_266":404,"_268":405},"93e226836eb36f3f7d648025318f5e20c1340b5e61ba0327a978fc0fa83b90aa","7457d4d8b02cff1f02ec89d51b6c0ad022b8edbc839ac057786dbb76e3f1da008bb1e9a0bb4c402e492e8788b125c559851cd9cd2b387f9d0d65e0d5a5cb7b55",[397,398,399,401,402],[271,387],[44,390],[327,400,39,329],"30023:c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da:b6d2a528-9b15-44f2-8b44-28c4ddb126f7",[262,263],[137,403,39],"c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da","Pope Leo says he was not ‘trying to debate’ Trump over US attack on Iran\nPontiff says that despite ‘certain narrative that has not been accurate’, he will continue to preach message of peace\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzp3cvxjt27s74qhy9ctz5k3ujgqd3vg96pdme8nywdq6g6le2yzw6qqjxydnyxfsn2v3c95ukyvf4956rge3j95uxydp595ersce5v3jxyvfjxenrwaayy3l ",1776548351,"Pope Leo XIV said on Saturday that it was “not in my interest at all” to debate the US president, Donald Trump about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel message of peace.\nLeo spoke to reporters aboard the papal plane flying from Cameroon to Angola as part of his 11-day tour of Africa.\nHe addressed the spiraling back-and-forth saga of Trump’s critiques of his peace message, which have dominated news headlines this week. But the American pope also sought to set the record straight, insisting that his preaching isn’t directed at Trump, but reflects the broader Gospel message of peace.\n“There’s been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects, but because of the political situation created when, on the first day of the trip, the president of the United States made some comments about myself,” he said, according to an official Vatican news agency.\n“Much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary, trying to interpret what has been said,” the pontiff added.\nTrump launched the criticism on his social media platform on Sunday, when he criticized Leo’s preaching about peace as the war, which took to be criticism of the joint US.-Israeli attack on Iran, which killed civilians, including children, and was followed by Iran’s retaliation.. Trump accused Leo of being “weak on crime”, possibly because of the pope’s previous criticism of the president’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants on the false premise that they are mostly criminals, and claimed that the first American pontiff owed his election to Trump.\nLater in the week, the president justified his attacks on the Catholic leader by claiming, falsely, “the pope made a statement, he says: ‘Iran can have a nuclear weapon’”. The pope has, in fact, spoken out against what he called “the profound horrors wrought by nuclear weapons”.\nDespite Trump’s effort to justify his attack on Iran as necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, there is also no evidence that Iran has had an active nuclear weapons program since 2003, when it was suspended by a decree from the country’s supreme leader. Trump’s intelligence director, Tulsi Gabbard, testified to Congress last year that the US intelligence agencies “assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon”. Iran has repeatedly asserted its right, under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, to enrich uranium for peaceful, civilian purposes, including energy production.\nLeo has issued consistent calls for peace and dialogue, and has denounced the use of religious justification for war. Specifically, he called Trump’s threat to annihilate Iranian civilization “truly unacceptable”.\nThe Vatican has stressed that when Leo preaches about peace, he is referring to all wars ravaging the planet, not just the Iran conflict. The Russian Orthodox church, for example, has justified Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine as a “holy war”.\nTrump’s attacks on the pope have divided his Christian followers, with some expressing their disgust but others defending the president and claiming the Catholic church lost its moral authority when it turned a blind eye to sexual predator priests.\nSean Hannity, the Fox News host and staunch Trump defender, even told viewers this week: “As of today, I no longer consider myself a Catholic,” citing “institutionalized corruption” and “scandals” that went, he said, “all the way to Rome”.\nSpeaking to reporters on Saturday, Leo referred specifically to his remarks earlier this week at a peace meeting in Bamenda, Cameroon. The city is the epicenter of a separatist conflict that has been raging in the western, Anglophone region of the country for nearly a decade.\nLeo also said that his remarks on Thursday, in which he condemned the “handful of tyrants” who were ravaging Earth with war and exploitation, were written “two weeks ago, well before the person had ever commented on me and on the message of peace that I am promoting. And yet as it happens, it was viewed as if I was trying to debate again with the president, which is not in my interest at all.”",{"_307":251,"_308":408,"_309":409},"ea0ede25-164e-454d-adbd-bc6134c9504e",{"_27":408,"_40":410,"_253":411,"_42":412,"_278":413,"_314":413,"_29":285,"_315":414,"_317":415,"_271":39,"_80":-5,"_82":118,"_232":416,"_307":251,"_335":-5},"Pope Leo XIV says 'not in my interest at all' to debate Trump but will keep preaching peace","Pope Leo XIV stated on Saturday that debating U.S. President Trump on the topic of the Iran war is not in his interest. He affirmed his continued commitment to preaching the Gospel message of peace. The Pope indicated he would not engage in such a debate.","Pope Leo XIV said Saturday that it was \"not in my interest at all\" to debate U.S. President Trump about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel message of peace.","https://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/media/image/2026/04/18/Cameroon_Africa_Pope__594__s1440x960.jpg?f72536d07237fdd262042ae8f5e6e6de3b865f3c","2026-04-18T15:14:34","https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/apr/18/pope-leo-xiv-says-not-interest-debate-donald-trump-keep-preaching/",{"_27":417,"_235":418,"_134":322,"_80":419,"_265":426,"_266":427,"_268":428},"047e1851112c0350f1f25e84e86f4a6f130ee5e65d9446bce6aa8833a3341b98","157f0fc0f70850b5e1a0514a77c263b9522ff850db9c24b76724c38aced3814e3afa9903cddfbe491e391b5a4dd2f4c256cfc5e73e64315088c9163d9bf24e95",[420,421,422,424,425],[271,410],[44,413],[327,423,39,329],"30023:df280c155aaf9ef6d87135ea08453842ba3911d3054bbb9dc8321dcc530e9569:ea0ede25-164e-454d-adbd-bc6134c9504e",[262,263],[137,426,39],"df280c155aaf9ef6d87135ea08453842ba3911d3054bbb9dc8321dcc530e9569","Pope Leo XIV says 'not in my interest at all' to debate Trump but will keep preaching peace\nPope Leo XIV said Saturday that it was \"not in my interest at all\" to debate U.S. President Trump about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel message of peace.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzphegps244tu77mv8zd02ppznss468ygaxp2thwwusvsae3fsa9tfqqjx2cfsv4jx2v3495cnvdr9956r2dry94skgcny943xxd33xv6xxwf4xq6x2nl8ysy ",1776525274,[],"selectedArticleImage","rootArticleImageUrl","consensusHtml","tweets",[],"userSchema","relatedArticles",[310,339,386,363,409],"actionData","errors"]

Pope Leo Clarifies Remarks on Trump; VP Vance Expresses Gratitude

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