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Archbishop Thomas Wenski presides over Good Friday of the Lord\u2019s Passion at St. Mary Cathedral on Friday, April 3, 2026, in Miami.<\/p>\n
PHOTO BY AL DIAZ<\/p>\n
adiaz@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
As President Donald Trump spars with Pope Leo XIV and posts provocative religious images on his social media, Miami\u2019s Catholic archbishop wants to remind the faithful that this isn\u2019t the first time the church has clashed with political leaders.<\/p>\n
Wenski\u2019s comments come at a time when the world\u2019s two most influential U.S. leaders \u2014 the pope and Trump \u2014 have openly disagreed about the war in Iran, which has stretched into its seventh week. The pope recently condemned the war\u2019s<\/a> \u201cabsurd and inhuman violence,\u201d appealing for peace in the Middle East, and responded to<\/a> Trump\u2019s threat to annihilate Iranian civilization on Easter Sunday as \u201ctruly unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe pope doesn\u2019t have to please anybody except the Lord,\u201d Miami\u2019s Archbishop Thomas Wenski said in an interview Monday, adding that some people \u201cwill be upset\u201d and others \u201cwill applaud what he says,\u201d but that Pope Leo is not looking for reactions one way or another.<\/p>\n \u201cAs religious leaders we should be political but not partisan,\u201d Wenski said. \u201cPolitics is about how we organize society … and the church has something to say about that. What ways we can organize society that will increase human flourishing?\u201d<\/p>\n Wenski pointed out that Pope John Paul II was strongly opposed to the Iraq war and made that known to then-President George W. Bush. Conflicts are expected between leaders, but it\u2019s important for people to weigh the arguments of religious leaders as well as secular leaders, said Wenski.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause sometimes their arguments are based on solid theological and philosophical premises, and not just on emotions,\u201d Wenski said.<\/p>\n Wenski said the church, including the pope and the bishops, \u201cwill upset people on the right sometimes, and they\u2019ll upset people on the left sometimes,\u201d but that is how the church shows that \u201cwe\u2019re doing our job.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s unusual in the case of the pope\u2019s recent criticism of Trump\u2019s military action in Iran, said Wenski, is that the president would attack the Catholic leader directly. Trump posted a lengthy criticism of Pope Leo, calling him \u201cweak on crime\u201d and \u201cterrible for foreign policy.\u201d<\/p>\n On Monday, the pope told reporters he is \u201cnot afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018I think he probably regrets it\u2019<\/p>\n Wenski also commented on a religiously provocative image Trump posted to his social media. Trump shared the now-deleted image, which showed Trump wearing a biblical-style robe and appearing to heal a sick man with his light-filled hands, on Truth Social Sunday night, but deleted the post on Monday morning. Religious and political leaders from around the world condemned the image, some calling it a sacrilege.<\/p>\n \u201cAs Christians, we all should try to look like Jesus, not in appearances, but in our actions,\u201d Wenski said, referring to the image of Trump. Trump said at a press conference on Monday that he thought the image depicted him as a healer, not as a deity.<\/p>\n \u201cI think he probably regrets it,\u201d Wenski said about Trump\u2019s post. \u201cThe fact that it\u2019s taken down, and now the president is saying that he thought it was an image of a doctor says that he\u2019s putting some spin on it.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s controversial social media post depicting himself as a Jesus-like figure is more \u201cdamaging\u201d to his own image as a leader than it is to the Catholic Church, said Wenski.<\/p>\n As faith leaders continue to toe the line between politics and religious teachings, Wenski said that priests and other clergy do not need to shy away from politics, but should not show bias toward one political party over another.<\/p>\n Catholics should be focused on living out the gospel, Wenski said, which may put them at odds with their own political leanings.<\/p>\n \u201cA Catholic that\u2019s trying to live out those teachings will feel homeless in either party at this point,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n This story was produced with financial support<\/a> from Trish and Dan Bell and donors in South Florida\u2019s Jewish and Muslim communities, including Khalid and Diana Mirza and the Mohsin and Fauzia Jaffer Foundation, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work.<\/p>\n This story was originally published April 13, 2026 at 6:58 PM.<\/p>\n
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