Behind The Headlines
"I have no fear of the Trump administration"
Pope Leo’s comment on the plane today, “I have no fear of the Trump administration,” stuck out at me because it is unusual for a Pope to call out a politician by name.
The Vatican and Popes usually keep their comments general, even if everyone knows who they are talking about, as part of diplomatic protocol and to avoid becoming fodder for political gain or ugly personal fights, as is now happening between President Trump and the Pope.
The comment also struck me because its belligerent tone was not consonant with the rest of what Leo said regarding Trump’s tweet against him.
I suspected it had something to do with the way the question was phrased and indeed that is the case:
video courtesy of Vatican Press Pool
Here’s the full exchange, which happened when the Pope came to the back of the plane to say hello to journalists on the out-bound flight this morning to Africa.
Claudio Lavanga, NBC: “What did you think? He said you’re terrible at foreign policy, you have a fear of the Trump administration”
Pope: “I have no fear of the Trump administration, nor speaking out loud about the message of the Gospel. I am called to do what the Church is called to do, we’re not politicians that make foreign policy, as he calls it, with the same perspective as he might understand it, but I do believe in the message of the Gospel, blessed are the peacemakers…”
There are several other videos of the Pope answering the same topic with other journalists but he does not repeat the line about not being afraid of the Trump administration. His comments are, on the contrary, quite subdued.
Italian journalist Ignazio Ingrao RAI: “After the criticisms expressed by President Trump, that you are weak in foreign policy, weak on criminality, if he were not President, you would not have been elected. What do you want to say about that?
Pope: “Very little. I think people who read it can draw their own conclusions. I am not a politician I don’t intend to enter into a debate with him. Moreover my message has always been the same, to promote peace and I say it for all world leaders, not only him. We always want to end wars and promote peace.”
To Nicole Winfield, AP (question not on video)
Pope: “The things that I say are certainly not meant as attacks on anyone. The message of the Gospel is very clear, blessed are the peacemakers. I will not shy away from the message of the Gospel, I’m inviting all people to look for ways of building bridges for peace and reconciliation, of look for ways to avoid war anytime it’s possible. To put my message on the same plane as what the President has attempted to do here is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is and I’m sorry to hear that but I will continue on with what I believe is the mission of the Church.”
It is a small point but given the heated nature of President Trump’s tweets, I think it is worth pointing out. A headline like that will naturally thrill many news organizations and those who delight in portraying Leo as the Vatican’s answer to Trump.
I am not downplaying the importance of the Pope and the Vatican’s opposition to the war, but it behooves no one of good will right now to cheer on a side-show of Trump v Pope and fuel to the fire has been inadvertently (I think) added by Leo’s comment.
I was around in 2003 when John Paul II and the Vatican continually spoke out against the war in Iraq. The US Bishops wrote a letter to President Bush on in September of 2002 to stop the war. The Vatican’s semi-official journal, La Civilta’ Cattolica dedicated an entire editorial in January 2003 against the war. John Paul II repeated at various moments, “No to war! It is always a defeat for humanity.”
In 1991 during the First Gulf War, John Paul II wrote a personal letter to President George H.W. Bush and to Sadaam Hussein to try to stop the war.
You can go back through any number of modern wars – including Pope Benedict XV in 1914, elected just a few days after the beginning of the First World War and find Vatican condemnation of conflict.
As the Italians say, “the Pope does the Pope” so no one is surprised to see him condemn war.
What the Pope shouldn’t do is get involved in personal fights with other world leaders and in this case I think Leo did not intend to do that, as much as the headlines try to suggest otherwise.