NEW TAMPA, Fla. — Pope Leo XIV has criticized the war in Iran and called for peace in the Middle East, drawing strong reactions from Catholics on both sides of the issue.
Over the past several weeks, the Pope has criticized President Trump, condemning the war in Iran. Before a ceasefire attempt last week, Trump threatened to destroy Iranian civilization. Pope Leo called that unacceptable.
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On Sunday, Trump called the Pope "weak" on Truth Social.
"I don't want a pope who thinks it's OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon... and I don't want a pope who criticizes the president of the United States," Trump said.
The president also posted an AI-generated image of himself depicted as Jesus Christ. The post was deleted more than 13 hours later.
Today, the Pope said he is not worried about speaking out.
"I have no fear of neither the Trump administration nor speaking loudly about the message of the gospel... that's what I believe I am called to do and the church is called to do," Pope Leo said.
The Diocese of Saint Petersburg pointed to a statement from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, calling it "disheartening" that the president used such harsh words about the Holy Father.
The Diocese of Saint Petersburg affirms the response of Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: “It is disheartening to hear that the President chose to write such disparaging words about the Holy Father. The Pope is not his rival; nor is the Pope a politician. He is the Vicar of Christ who speaks from the truth of the Gospel and for the care of souls.”
We also point to the Holy Father, Pope Leo, who has consistently emphasized the Church’s mission: "I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems. Too many people are suffering in the world today. Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone needs to stand up and say, there's a better way to do this."
To hear local reactions, I went to St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in New Tampa.
Vincent Ciaravino was heading into noon mass when he said politics do not belong in matters of war and peace.
"It shouldn’t be viewed as he's speaking out against the war on Iran. He is basically just reaffirming the gospels," Ciaravino said. "I don't think that Christ came in as a Republican or a Democrat. I think he was more of an independent."
Some parishioners felt conflicted and did not want to comment on camera. One person said the Pope's comments have "gotten out of hand."
Deacon Scott Paine said this is not personal - it's an issue that concerns people who are dying in war everyday.
"Wherever that war is taking place, that's a tragedy and that's not what Christ wants," Paine said. "It's not about politics. It's not about whether you're Republican, Democrat, conservative, liberal - Christ teaches us to seek peace, and that's what he's been speaking about."
Paine said he stands on the side of peace.
"My understanding of what the Pope has been saying has been very clear and has been very consistent with what the church says about peace, that we are to seek peace, that we are to treat every human being as a brother or a sister, and I think that message is clearly Jesus' message, and it's the message of the church," Paine said.
The war of words is also playing out online.
People commented on our Tampa Bay 28 Facebook page saying things like "Does the pope reject terrorism?" and "He needs to stay in his bubble and keep his mouth closed."
At the end of the day, many Catholics I spoke with have one thing in common: they want peace.
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