The ascent of Cardinal Robert Francis Prévost at the Papacy marks an extraordinary moment for American leadership on the world scene at a time when President Trump transformed the reputation of the country abroad and fueled the distrust of the longtime allies.
But while two Americans are now seated in positions of a huge global influence, Pope Leo XIV can offer the world a different vision of the American values of Mr. Trump’s first approach in America, which he has executed through rigorous prices, imperialist reflections and vast cuts with foreign aid.
When presented to the world, the new Pope – who speaks five languages and is a naturalized citizen of Peru – underlined his pluralist origin, making a point of speaking in Italian (representing his new constituency) and in Spanish (his old). He did not speak English and had no reference in the United States, even if some Catholics of Saint-Pierre impatiently agitated American flags. (Friday, he spoke briefly in English when he delivered his first homily.)
There are indications that the first American pontiff disapproves of some of the hard positions of the Trump administration. A social media account under his name has republished messages criticizing the president’s positions on issues such as immigration, control of firearms and climate change. In February, the account shared a link to an article by the national Catholic journalist entitled “JD vance is false: Jesus does not ask us to classify our love for others. “”
“We have this powerful moral voice that will potentially be able to face the other most powerful American voice,” said Charlie Sykes, an anti-top curator who is Catholic. “Donald Trump has led the world as an American ugly, and now we have another eminent American who is able to confront him.”
Sykes said Pope Leo’s advocacy on behalf of migrants, in particular, could challenge Trump, who continued an aggressive campaign to expel them as quickly as possible.
“Part of Donald Trump’s call is that he is the great champion of Christianity and now he will have to explain this to an American colleague who is the pope,” Sykes said. “There is very little, if not, figures that have the platform and the voice of the Holy See.”
John Prevost, Pope’s brother, told New York Times in an interview that he did not think that his brother would hesitate to express his disagreements with the president.
“I know that he is not satisfied with what’s going on with immigration,” he said. “I know that for a fact. How far he will go with it, it is only his supposition, but he will not be content to sit. I do not think he will be the silencer.”
However, the Vatican analysts say that Pope Leo is more reserved than his predecessor, and although they expect that he continues to defend migrants and the poor, some do not expect him to do it as a frank way that Pope Francis.
Mr. Trump and his supporters also found aspect of the history of the new Pope who excite them, including his ardent anti-abortion plea and his opposition to a government plan in Peru to add gender lessons in schools.
“He said and did things mixed in the past,” said John Yep, Catholics for Catholics, a group that supports Trump. “Let’s see how he does. I don’t want to rush for judgments from the start. ”
In the hours following the selection of Pope Leo, the president only praised the new church chief. Mr. Trump and Vice-President JD Vance both congratulated him in messages on social networks and celebrated his American heritage.
“The president made his reaction to the announcement of Pope Leo yesterday very clearly,” Karoline Leavitt, a press secretary of the White House, told journalists on Friday when they interviewed the Pope’s comments. “He is very proud to have an American pope.”
It is not known if Mr. Trump or Mr. Vance had been aware of Pope Leo’s criticism of their policies, but some of the president’s most strident supporters have already recorded their dissatisfaction.
“He is anti-Trump, anti-Maga, pro-open borders and a total Marxist like Pope Francis”, Laura Loomer, the far-right activist who persuaded Mr. Trump to draw some of his aids so as not to be faithful enough, wrote on X. “Catholics is not good to wait with impatient. Just another Marxist Puppet in the Vatican. Catholics.”
Representative Nancy Pelosi, the former speaker of the Chamber and a Catholic devotee, congratulated Pope Leo’s commitment to the poor and said that she hoped that he could unite American Catholics through partisan divisions.
“His vision based on values for the Church is very different from what we see of certain leaders, if you call them in our country, but I do not expect it to be engaged in a political debate with the President of the United States,” she said in an interview.
Even if Pope Leo is an American by birth, he has spent most of his adult life outside the country, and now as the Head of state of another nation, he remains to be seen what relationship he will have with the United States. Pope Francis, originally from Argentina, has never returned to his place of birth after having become the church chief.
American Cardinals said at a press conference on Friday that Pope Leo’s American identity was not a factor in his selection. When announced, the Vatican made no mention of his American nationality, presenting him rather as the second pope of the Americas.
Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the emeritus archbishop of Washington, DC, said that the conclave was not considered a “continuation of the American elections”.
“It was not an electoral conclave,” he said. “It was a desire to strengthen the Christian faith among the people of God.”
Joe Donelly, the American ambassador to the Holy See during the Biden administration, said that Pope Leo’s selection had transcended all nationality, but would also be used to demonstrate American values on the world stage.
“I think Pope Leo will be a wonderful reflection of America, Chicago and all our workers,” said Donelly. “It is a prototype of American success, working hard, hard student and being kind to others.”
The selection of cardinals from an American pope challenged the dominant belief that the Church would not choose a leader in world superpower. In the days preceding the conclave, Catholic commentators have speculated The fact that the disturbance by Mr. Trump of the world’s political and economic order has returned an Pope born in the United States even more improbable.
Indeed, some spectators gathered on Saint-Pierre Place Thursday were disconcerted when his identity emerged.
“An Americano?” Several marted in Italian.
“I am surprised and disappointed,” said Adam Mocarski, 31, from Poland.
Immediate disillusionment was not addressed to the new Pope himself, but seemed to reflect how Mr. Trump disrupted the international feeling towards America.
“Trump wants to divide,” said Francesca Elicio, 29, theater producer of Rome. “Trump has a negative effect not only on America, but on other countries. Perhaps the idea was to have an intermediary that can save not only the Church, but the whole world.”
Some analysts applied that the cardinals have selected Pope Leo precisely because of Mr. Trump. The president agitated many Catholics, even some of his allies, when he published an image generated by AI of himself disguised as Pope after the death of Pope Francis.
“The president may well be right to claim the credit for the selection, at least in part, given the photo he published on social networks,” said Rocco Palmo, analyst of the Catholic Church. “The choice of Leo is the way the cardinals say:” This is our process and we decide what is Catholic, not the White House. »»
Matthew Mpoke Bigg And Elizabeth Dias Contributed reports of the Vatican City.
