It’s almost difficult to know where to start, whether it’s the AI generated image of Trump in a white robe with angels and the American flag behind him bending down with his hand on a man’s head in a Christ-like pose or distasteful comments because Pope Leo stated that threatening to blow a civilization “to hell” was “unacceptable.”
Criticizing the Pope for having a “terrible foreign policy,” being “weak on crime,” and part of the “radical left” didn’t go far enough. Let’s see what Jesus said: “he who is without sin cast the first stone,” and ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.” Quite frankly, I’m not so sure that Pope Leo has a foreign policy, only the words of Jesus which hardly called for “wiping our” an entire civilization.
Jesus did not speak of salvation only in terms of what Woody Guthrie called “pie in the sky,” but of how we treat people here on earth. In this way, the evangelical right is correct: how we treat others is at the core of our faith. As Christians, we are called to speak for peace not a distorted gospel of war.
Prayer for the Day
Be with us, O God, in these troublesome times,
For we know you call on us to care for all;
Hold us fast, O Lord, to your Gospel of love,
For we know that many others use words for hate.
Guide us, O Holy One, as we work for peace,
And be our fount of strength as we serve you.
In the name of the One who calls for peace,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
We call on the people of God to live more intensely in hope and fervent prayer for peace in our hearts and in society, and we reject any type of violence.
Statement issued by the Venezuelan Council of Bishops, January 3, 2026
Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: “Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood” (Is 1:15).
Pope Leo, in the Homily on Palm Sunday 2026
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled
Blessed are the merciful for they will obtain mercy.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5: 5-7, 9