Pope Leo XIV insists he has "no fear" of Donald Trump and will continue to speak out against war, following the US President's recent scathing remarks about him.
This comes after Mr Trump had hit out against the pope, and his growing criticism of the US-Israeli war in Iran and the Trump administration's hard stance on immigration policies, claiming that Pope Leo was "terrible".
The pope even blasted the Iran war, which he called the "madness of war" in a peace appeal over the weekend.
"Leo should get his act together as Pope", Trump wrote on his Truth Social yesterday. "Pope Leo is weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy".
The president then told his followers that he was "not a big fan" of Pope Leo, accusing him of being "weak on nuclear weapons," just days after the pope had blasted Mr Trump's threats to destroy entire civilisation in Iran as "truly unacceptable".
The president also suggested that Leo was only elected as pope last year "because he was an American, and they thought that would be the best way to deal with President Donald J. Trump".
Unsurprisingly, Pope Leo and Mr Trump have very different views on immigration, with the president arguing that the US must work to prevent immigration from developing countries to reduce crime.
"He's a very liberal person and he's a man who doesn't believe in stopping crime", Trump said of Pope Leo.
US President Donald Trump has been heavily criticised over his recent comments about Pope Leo.
Having not initially commented on the matter, Pope Leo broke his silence in response to Mr Trump's remarks.
While aboard a papal flight to Algiers earlier today, Pope Leo also claimed that the Christian message was being "abused".
"I have no fear of neither the Trump administration nor speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel", he said. "We're not politicians. We're not looking to make foreign policy, as he [Trump] calls it, with the same perspective that he might understand it".
He continued: "I don't want to get into a debate with him. I don't think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing."
"I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems," he said. "Too many people are suffering in the world today," said Leo. "Too many innocent people are being killed. And I think someone has to stand up and say there's a better way".
Elsewhere, Catholics called out President Trump over his remarks about Pope Leo.
Speaking on this, Massimo Faggioli, an expert on the papacy said: "There is no ambiguity about the situation now".
He went on to compare Trump's comments to attempts made by past leaders of Germany and Italy in World Ward II to draw the late Pope Pius XII to support their causes.
"Not even Hitler or Mussolini attacked the pope so directly and publicly", he stated.
Archbishop Paul S Coakley, president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, also criticised Trump over his comments.
"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 and for the care of souls," he said in a statement.
