'Not Fighting With the Pope': Trump Steps Back From Tense Papal Clash After Days of Dispute

It appears that President Donald Trump has taken a step back from several days of his public feud with Pope Leo XIV.

The 79-year-old said that he is not "fighting" with the Pope and respects his right to speak freely, although he acknowledged that they do have certain disagreements.

The president's comments come after he and the Pope exchanged jibes and shared different views on the ongoing Iran conflict.

The public dispute began after Trump threatened military action against Iran around Easter, prompting Pope Leo to say the threat was "truly unacceptable."

On April 10, the pope wrote that anyone who is a disciple of Christ "is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs." Trump responded on Truth Social, calling the pope "WEAK on Crime and terrible for Foreign Policy."

Things escalated after the president shared a now-deleted AI image that portrayed him as a Jesus Christ-like figure, in a post on Truth Social.

However, the feud between the two now seems to have simmered down, as the president recently told reporters that he has “nothing against the Pope.”

Claiming to have differing opinions on how the world functions, Trump said that he is “not fighting with the Pope,” and praised the latter's brother for being “MAGA all the way.”

“I'm not fighting with the Pope. He made his statement. He says Iran could have a nuclear weapon. I say Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. And if the Pope looked at the 42,000 people that were killed over the last 2 or 3 months, as a protester with no weapons no nothing,” Trump said.

He further added, “So I could disagree with him. I have the right to disagree with the Pope… The Pope can say what he wants, and I want him to say what he wants. But I can disagree. I think that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

Trump’s comments come after he claimed that 42,000 protesters were killed by the Iranian regime in the last two months, in a post on Truth Social.

On April 12, Trump wrote on Truth Social, "If I wasn't in the White House, [Pope] Leo wouldn't be in the Vatican," prompting Bishop James Massa to respond.

Massa's remarks also followed Vice President JD Vance's suggestion that the pope should "be careful when he talks about matters of theology."

Massa, who chairs the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' doctrine committee, said the pope was preaching the Gospel rather than offering personal opinions.

"When Pope Leo XIV speaks as supreme pastor of the universal Church, he is not merely offering opinions on theology," Massa said in a statement, adding, "He is preaching the Gospel and exercising his ministry as the Vicar of Christ."

Trump addressed Massa's remarks, saying, "I want him to preach the gospel. I'm all about the gospel. But I also know that you cannot let a certain country which is a mean-spirited country have a nuclear weapon."