Donald Trump hearing from angry Republican Catholics who are disgusted by his obsession with His Holiness Pope Leo

A president cosplaying as Christ and trashing the pope crosses a moral red line | Echo Opinion published in the Miami Herald by Mary Anna Mancuso.

I’m a Republican. I’m also Catholic. And this weekend, both of parts of my identity were at odds when President Trump attacked Pope Leo, the first American pope in the history of the Roman Catholic Church. Trump called Leo, “WEAK on Crime and terrible for Foreign Policy,” in a post on Truth Social on Sunday evening. He then boasted it was because he was in the White House that Pope Leo is in the Vatican. But Trump didn’t stop there, in the same post, he made it political saying, “I like his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA.”

More troubling was the AI-generated image Trump shared on Truth Social depicting himself as Jesus Christ. When a sitting president borrows sacred religious imagery and attacks the head of the Catholic Church, it’s not just political rhetoric but blasphemy. The image has since been deleted after backlash, but the point remains: Trump’s attacks on Pope Leo are morally wrong. 

No other American president has ever done this.

Catholics believe the pope is the successor to St. Peter, the spiritual leader of more than a billion worldwide. 

But, here in South Florida, this isn’t some distant theological concept — it’s personal. The Archdiocese of Miami is home to roughly 1.3 million Catholics, the single-largest religious group in South Florida. That’s more than a number, it’s families across Miami-Dade County, and 30% of adults, according to Pew Research. 

You don’t have to be Catholic to understand that the pope’s role is moral, not political. Criticizing the pope isn’t new, it’s happened for centuries. Catholics have debated and disagreed with Church leaders before. But, morally, this is different from theological differences. Treating the papacy as a political opponent to be mocked crosses a line as red as the pope’s vestment.

When the president ridicules a spiritual leader, it makes the office of the presidency look small, not powerful. When every institution is treated as political and something to be conquered, nothing is left above politics. Democracy requires shared ground — institutions that are beyond the reach of one man’s ambition. The Catholic Church is one of them.

For two millennia, the church outlasted empires and survived wars. And it’s always emerged from centuries of political turmoil with its mission intact. Indeed, the Catholic Church will outlast Trump’s insolence, too. 

Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said he was “disheartened” by Trump’s comments, saying, “Pope Leo is not his rival; nor is the Pope a politician. He is the Vicar of Christ who speaks from the truth of the Gospel.” GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska said, “I saw a lot of Republicans commenting in it last night. Some saying he’s just trolling, and others saying it’s anti-Christian. 

When you divide your own party it is self destructive. To me it was a gaudy and juvenile post.” Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, called it “inappropriate and embarrassing.” 

These are not liberal critics. These are Republicans telling Trump he went too far. And the post’s deletion suggests the White House knew it, too. On Monday, Leo told reporters he is “not afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for.”

“We are not politicians,” Leo said. Leo didn’t mince words and conservatives must defend that distinction. A president who portrays himself as Christ while treating the pope as a political enemy is doing more than attacking a religious leader. Trump is claiming authority that no American president is meant to have. But the deletion of the image wasn’t an act of contrition. There hasn’t been an apology or statement issued. Under pressure, Trump retreated — which is telling. It shows the backlash worked and that a line still exists. And it means Americans — including conservatives and Christians who support Trump — will not follow him past it. The papacy isn’t a political target, and Jesus Christ isn’t a brand. Any president who refuses to acknowledge that diminishes the office he holds. 

Mary Anna Mancuso is a member of the Miami Herald Editorial Board. Her email: mmancuso@miamiherald.com