Vatican City.- Pope Leo XIV stated this Tuesday that if anyone wants to criticize him “let them do it with the truth”, after the new attacks from United States President Donald Trump, and defended that the mission of the Church is “to preach the Gospel and peace”.
“The mission of the Church is to preach the Gospel and peace,” he told reporters as he left his residence in Castel Gandolfo, on the outskirts of Rome. And he added: “Therefore, if anyone wishes to criticize me for announcing the Gospel, let them do so with the truth, for the Church has spoken out against all nuclear weapons for years and there is no doubt about it.” Asked about the use of weaponry for self-defense —a central point of friction with the Trump Administration—, the Pope responded in English, underlining the complexity of the current war scenario: “Self-defense has traditionally been permitted by the Church. Therefore, to speak of ‘just war’ today is a very complex problem that must be analyzed on many levels.” “Since entering the nuclear age, the entire concept of war must be reevaluated under current terms. I will always believe that dialogue is much better than entering a nuclear conflict,” he emphasized. The American pontiff’s statements come after new accusations from Trump on the Salem news channel, where he accused the Pope of “endangering many Catholics” for his alleged lack of firmness regarding Iran’s nuclear program. Leo XIV recalled that his position is consistent with his inaugural message of May 8, 2025: “I already spoke from the first moment of being elected and, now that we are close to the anniversary, I reiterate: peace be with you.”You may be interested in: The Vatican confirms a meeting between the Pope and Marco Rubio on Thursday after disagreements
Regarding this meeting, the Pope expressed his desire to “maintain a good dialogue, with trust and frankness, to understand each other well” and noted: “I believe that the issues he is coming for are not those of today”.
