Pope Leo XIV pushed back against interpretations that his recent calls for peace during his trip to Africa were directed specifically at United States President Donald Trump, saying his remarks were part of a broader message. Source: CNS.
While the Pope had responded to comments from the Trump Administration earlier in the trip, he said on Saturday the speeches delivered in Algeria and Cameroon were prepared in advance and intended for local communities and leaders more broadly.
“At the same time, there has been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects,” he told journalists, “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”, referring to coverage that linked his remarks to Mr Trump.
He added that “much of what has been written since then has been more commentary on commentary, trying to interpret what has been said”.
For example, the Pope said, his remarks during a meeting for peace with residents in Bamenda, Cameroon, on April 16 had been written two weeks prior, “well before the president ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting”.
“And yet, as it happened, it was looked at as if I was trying to debate against the president, which is not in my interest at all,” he said.
In that address to the community, the Pope spoke broadly about violence, exploitation and the misuse of religion, warning: “Blessed are the peacemakers! But woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain.”
“The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild,” he had said in the speech, adding: “The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters.”
Throughout his trip, Pope Leo has repeatedly framed peace as a global moral responsibility, emphasising the importance of working together toward justice and the need to reject violence.
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Peace appeals in Africa were not aimed at Trump, Pope says (By Josephine Peterson, CNS)
