Pope Leo, the 14th, is absolutely furious at Donald Trump and the Trump regim...
Pope Leo has called off all visits essentially to the United States on the 250th United States anniversary July 4th,
“Pope Leo made a point that he will be in Lampadusa in Italy, spending his time showing compassion for the migrant community there. And we're learning some additional details as”
Pope Leo, the 14th has been calling out Donald Trump and his despicable regimes imperialist and tactics of saying we're going to obliterate civilizations and everything is going to war. We're going to obliterate you and destroy everything. Pope Leo, the 14th has been calling that out and J.D. Vans who converted to Catholicism and Pete Hegseth who invokes God all the time. Pope Leo, the 14th has been pretty much directing messages without necessarily saying their names, but it's clear he's calling them out.
And so what the Trump regime tried to do, and this was a tactic that Hitler did with the bishops right before Hitler engaged, you know, in the Holocaust right around that time, is to threaten Pope Leo the 14th and to threaten the Holy See, with the United States military, and essentially the same way the Trump regime was threatening to invade Greenland,
“right behind the scenes what we're learning today is that the United States was making threats that suggested that”
they would use military force against the Holy See against the Vatican against Pope Leo the 14th and they summoned Pope Leo the 14th, like Ben, what are you talking about? Yes, they summoned Pope Leo the 14th, top American diplomat to the Pentagon, which now calls itself unlawfully the Department of War, the Undersecretary of War, Elbridge Colby invoked the Avingnon Papacy, the period when the French Crown used military force to bend the bishop of Rome to its will, and they said that we have the
powers, this is what the Trump regime said to Pope Leo the 14th, top diplomat in the United States, that we have the military power to do whatever we want, whatever we want, we will do in the world,
“and Pope Leo the 14th, he needs to know that. So the Catholic Church has better to better take sides,”
and they better take the right side. Now, this meeting that took place that I just referenced was in January, and it followed Pope Leo the 14th speech, which was kind of a state of the world speech that he gives, and as Christopher Hal writes, in the speech that enraged Pete Hicks at the top Pentagon officials, Pope Leo the 14th said, a diplomacy that promotes dialogue and seeks consensus among all parties, is being replaced by a diplomacy based on force. War is back in
Vogue and a zeal for war is spreading. The principal established after the Second World War,
which prohibit nations from using force to violate the borders of others, has been completely undermined, and since Pope Leo the 14th essentially had his life threatened, and the life of the Cardinals and Miships and others, and all they see threatened by the Trump regime, Pope Leo the 14th has not backed down at all during this unlawful and catastrophic war in Iran, where at the end Donald Trump completely folded, Pope Leo the 14th directed this message
to Pete Hicks. Jesus is the king of peace, who rejects war, who no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them. Even though you make many prayers, God will not listen. Your hands are full of blood. In other words, Pete Hicks stop invoking the name of God and Jesus in your war crimes, because they are not listening. Also, Pope Leo the 14th is saying that the type of thinking of Hexith and J.D.
Vance is entirely foreign to the way of Jesus Christ, the Pope argues that Christianity has been distorted by a desire for domination, warning that people mistake power for righteousness. We consider ourselves powerful when we dominate. Victorious when we destroy. Instead, He says, God is example is not how to dominate, but how to give life. And adds that Jesus does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war. Take a look at some of the posts that Pope Leo
the 14th has been making lately. He says, the cross is part of the mission. The imperialist occupation of the world is disrupted from within. The violence that until now has been the law is unmasked. The poor imprisoned and rejected Messiah descends into the darkness of death.
Yet in doing so, He brings in a new creation. He also writes, death is always lurking.
We see it in violence in the wounds of the world, in the cry of pain that ris...
because of the abuses that crush the weakest among us because of the idolatry of profit that plunders the earth's resources because of the violence of war that kills and destroys. He then writes, again, these are messages that seem obviously directed at Trump and Heggsip and Vance and this entire Trump regime. Often, the proclamation of truth is obscured by what we today call fake news, lies, insinuations, and unfounded accusations yet in the
face of such obstacles. The truth does not remain hidden. Rather, it comes for to need us, living in radiant, illuminating even in the deepest and darkness and the deepest and darkest hours.
Now, when Pope Leo the 14th was ultimately made, the Pope, lots of people, and became the
Pope, lots of people were looking at his background. The first American Pope board and raised in the United States of America and then obviously studying and traveling abroad and rising
“through the ranks of the Catholic Church abroad. But I think someone who was known that would”
stand up against the exact type of things that Donald Trump is engaging in now and he has not shied away from it. Remember when Donald Trump had the, he's still having it, but when the ice and border patrol Gestapo were rounding up and killing and murdering and maming people in the streets, you had Pope Leo the 14th standing up, speaking out, coordinating with cardinals in the
United States and bishops and the church, and the church got really active as you remember.
I mean, going into the, uh, the build, the immigration federal immigration buildings. I mean, being there demanding that they be able to pray with the individuals who were kidnapped and a minister mass, all of that was happening in Pope Leo the 14th was behind it all and he was directing it. I mean, just to show you some other data points. I mean, this was Pete Heggsiff. This was Heggsiff
“yesterday, um, invoking the name of God over and over again in terms of threatening the entire civilization”
of Iran with genocide. You're playing this clip. Our troops, our American warriors deserve the credit for this day, but God deserves all the glory. Tens of thousands of sordies, refuelings and strikes carried out under the protection of divine providence, a massive effort with miraculous protection. Dude, 44 Bravo spoke for all of us. God is good. Then you had J.D. Vance on the tarmac after trying to prop up Victor Orban Putin's puppet.
J.D. Vance was saying that he doesn't even know who cardinal Christophe Eres and has no clue about any of these people and we don't know about the threats that were taking place by the defense department threatening essentially war, threatening to attack and invade the Holy See and go back to the Avignon papacy in the 13th century. This is what J.D. Vance. Oh, no, I don't know if you're playing this clip. X has been a buzz. The last couple days of the free press story saying that senior Pentagon officials
in January, including Rich Colby brought Cardinal Pierre into the Pentagon. Cardinal Christophe Eres into the Pentagon. I haven't seen the story unfortunately. Essentially, they're booting by the free presses that they told him that the American military has a lot of might and they can do whatever they want and the church should get on its side.
“Does that message down correct you? Is that something you would sign on time?”
So one, I, I, with no disrespect to the Cardinal, I don't know who Cardinal Christophe Eres. Yeah, ambassador to the Holy See and the U.S. Oh, okay, okay. I, I've, I've met him before, sorry. I just didn't remember the name.
I've never seen this reporting. I'd like to actually talk to Cardinal Christophe Eres
and frankly, to our people to figure out what actually happened. I think it's always a bad idea. To offer an opinion on stories that are unconfirmed and uncorroibrated, so I'm not going to do that. Well, tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to bring in Christopher Hale. And I've cited Christopher Hale's stories and reporting before he's got these sub-stack letters from Leo, the American Pope and U.S. politics. And you know, look, I understand as well
that our audience spans lots of religions from Catholic to Christianity to Muslims to Jews to Hindu to no religion. And the main kind of core principle that we talked about here at the Midas Touch Network, though, is empathy. It's love. It's bringing people together. Whatever religion or no religion, it's about bringing people together. And to me, Donald Trump's all about dividing and attacking. And I think regardless of what your religion is, I think we can
Objectively look at what Pope Leo the 14 has demonstrated with his leadership...
up to Donald Trump and recognizing there's a great deal of power in that. And that's why
“the Trump regime was so intimidated and threatened him. You have great sourcing inside the Vatican”
in Washington, D.C. And you seem to know everything that's going on as it relates to the intersection of the church and U.S. politics and the church generally you were handling Catholic outreach for Obama. You've written for Time Magazine and other periodicals about the church. And so to talk to us about this incident, and let's talk more broadly about Pope Leo the 14 standing up to Trump. But talk to us about what your sources are telling you about this incident.
Well, I'm going to say that this reporter originated with the free press and we were able to
confirm it throughout the day. But here's how the story goes. In early January, Cardinal Christophear, as you mentioned, who was up until last month, a Pope Leo's personal nuncio, which is Vatican
“Street for Ambassador to United States, was strangely called not to the State Department, mind you.”
He is a diplomat, but actually directly to the Pentagon, which is strange in itself. And then a while ago, he was there at the Pentagon. There was a meeting with the other Secretary of State. And in this meeting, it suggested that the Cardinal Christophear that they were upset with Pope Leo to 14's early January address to the Vatican. It's the diplomatic core of the Holy Sea, where he said that war is back in Vogue. There is a zill for war, and that the rule of law
regarding the territory of nations have been violated. Mind you, this speech took place days after Trump's invasion of Venezuela. So the administration was correct to read this as a critique of their policy, obviously global and nature, but yes, of what they had done in Venezuela, and what they were threatening at that point to do in Greenland, and what they've done now, in Iran, just months later. So when he came in, it was tense. One of the diplomats suggested
brought up the abing on papacy, which you mentioned earlier, for your readers, the abing on papacy was this 14th century phenomenon where the French regime was upset with the papacy. So not only did they influence the papacy, they kidnap the Pope, Pope Boniface, they kidnap and in fact killed him, murdered him. And so it was a stunning suggestion to be made to bring up in this meeting. And Cardinal Kristoff Pierre from our sourcing takes this information back
to the Holy Sea back to the Vatican, and it had been discussions about, hopefully, at a 14th coming to the United States this year, and that was put on ice. And from what I can understand, it's been put on ice indefinitely. There's some thoughts that he might come here in 2027.
“I honestly do not think we'll see Pope Lee on the United States until after Donald Trump”
leaves the presidency. You know, when he's picking to go to Lampadusa on July 4th, that's the island right by Italy, which is known as a hub of migration, which is kind of used there in Italy by politicians and other anti-immigrant groups over there as kind of the way certain locations in the Southern border here in the United States are, you know, and it's kind of this been used to kind of attack migrants. And I think a message is being sent that on your July 4th, 250th anniversary
day, when J.D. Vance hand delivered that letter during the visit to Rome. I remember the video that you shared with it as well, appropriately, or the 40th. Like kind of awkwardity. He looked at
an awkward encounter. Yeah, talk, talk does about that, and then basically rejecting the visit.
I mean, I'm not, I'm not sure. Talk does about that. Yeah, so Pope, Popleo was inaugurated last May, May 18th, and J.D. Vance comes to see Popleo, mind you. J.D. Vance was the last person ever to see Pope Francis the last leader to see Pope Francis, so he met two Popes within days of each other. And he delivers a letter. There's some contest about exactly what was in the letter, but it was two invites, Popleo to be the United States this year. It's for the 250th anniversary of our country.
And Leo takes the letter, and he, it's an awkward encounter. Maybe drop in the show notes, but he puts the letter on May and says, I'll take a look at that later. But there was talk about the Pope coming for the 250th anniversary, but after this meeting that occurred, that was taken
Off the table, and you spoke about Lampadusa.
point of entry is point of entry between North Africa, in the Mediterranean Sea, and Italy and Europe, but it's also a very poignant point in the history of the Catholic Church. Pope Francis,
that was his first trip outside of Rome. He went there in July of 2013. And he said that
a very famous homily, he said, we are a people who have forgotten how to weep for the sufferings of others. So he's doing two things. He's going, he's making a point of statement to be there on the 4th of July. And he's also honoring his predecessor, who notably said that Donald Trump isn't Christian. He said that in response to Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, his efforts to build
“the wall, which of course was what he ran on in 2016. So it's this dual message, but I think maybe”
what's maybe not unknown to your listeners is that he's actually going to speak to the United
States. He received a liberty medal award from Philadelphia, the city of Philadelphia on July 3.
If you go and look through those, the previous recipients of them, their progressive heroes and icons for the ages. So he's going to have a message for the United States. I'll be, it will be mobile. It'll be remote on July 3rd. And then he'll be in Lampadusa on July 4th. I am very excited for the front page of the newspaper above the fold below the fold because truly Leo will offer counter-messaging to what Donald Trump and JD bands in what dribble they might offer those days. He's
smart. This man consumes media, consumes English media. He understands how to play the media in United States. He understands how it works. And what I find fascinating is that when Leo speaks, when he wants to say something important, he says it in English. And for Catholics, we know we associate the man in the white, being very good at Italian, pretty good at Spanish, and not very good at English. This is the history of the papacy. It's remarkable to hear a pope speak fluent,
natural native English. And when he wants to say something important, he says it in English. And it
gets picked up here. You know, and finally, you've been reporting how Pope Leo the 14th has been
able to successfully organize, whether it's Cardinals, Bishops, all different ranks of the cloth of people helping migrants here. And that's been a major effort. Even people who at first, based on some of their background, you think may not have been so publicly out there, you know,
“in support of being on the front lines to help migrants. You know, I think we've seen”
this effort. I mean, you've covered these massive meetings, both in the United States and abroad, you know, of all these people in the Catholic Church. And you know, you've made it clear that, yes, but behind all of this is actually Pope Leo the 14th. And so before we go, talk to us about just the broader resistance efforts and how strong they've been. And the real fact that the Trump regime is truly intimidated by this. And it does have this historical parallel to Hitler being intimidated
by not being able to break the church and trying to figure out how to maneuver there, like it, you know, whether it's being done because of that playbook or that's just an authoritarian thinking of dealing with the church. There are parallels there as well. So maybe, you know, combine those two
“concepts before we go. Well, I think the first thing I know is that I'm from Tennessee,”
in maga country throughout this nation, the Catholic Church is leading the resistance to Donald Trump. You had nuns who marched in Georgia. You had a bishop in Arkansas, compared Trump's actions to the Holocaust to Nazi Germany. You have here in Tennessee. You have the bishop's standing up against deportation. So I think in maga country, you have the church being a bulwark, a remarkably a bulwark against the Trump administration and the progressives across the country are seeing
the church as something to look up to. I think the final thing I will say is I think that Pope Francis himself was leading on these issues, but he did have resistance among the hierarchy in the United States. What they often would do is they would reduce Francis to being Argentinian. They would say, "Oh, the man from Buenos Aires, he doesn't understand life here in the United States." And so I think a lot of the bishop's thought, the conservative bishop's thought,
was this way for the next pope? And then by the grace of God, the next pope is a Chicagoan.
An American, a progressive, a man who cares deeply about the poor, the migrants.
victims of war, the oppressed. And you can not simply say he doesn't understand us, he is one of us.
“Hopefully, the 14th is one of us. So I've seen a conversion of sorts of the”
episcopy, the episcopacy of the business of the United States. Whether that's not what that's
because they realize that the man's in charge is one of their own or is it's a conversion of
“heart, the end reality of it is, is the Catholic church in the United States is unifying”
as a bull work against maga, authoritarianism. And Catholic Christian, religious, or not, we can all be thankful for that. Christopher Hall, those social media posts do make a get.
“Just so people know, I mean 4 million views, 5 million views, 3 million regularly.”
And it's when I'm trying to research areas regarding the church and its interactions, you know, it's where I go to get my knowledge. Letters from Leo is the name of Christopher Hall's Substack, the American pope, and he was politics. Thanks for joining us, Christopher. We'd love to have you back on. Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.
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