Karoline Leavitt defends Donald Trump amid Pope Leo XIV criticism over prayer and war
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Karoline Leavitt defends Donald Trump amid Pope Leo XIV criticism over prayer and war")
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 15, 2026 Photograph: (AFP)
White House defends Trump’s call to pray for US troops after Pope Leo XIV condemns using religion to justify war, urging peace amid global conflicts.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to the message of Pope Leo XIV, who condemned the use of religion to justify war. Karoline Leavitt defended the US President and military leaders, saying that there is nothing wrong to call US people to pray for the service member. She asserted that “it is a noble thing to do.” This comes as a response to the statement of Pope Leo XIV that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.”
Defending Karoline Leavitt, he said, “I think our nation was a nation founded, 250 years ago almost, on Judeo-Christian values. And we’ve seen presidents, we’ve seen the leaders of the Department of War, and we’ve seen our troops go to prayer during the most turbulent times in our nation’s history.”
Leo said that Christ did not engage in any war, nor did he defend himself. "This is our God... A God who refuses war... who does not listen to the prayer of those who wage war," said Pope Leo during Palm Sunday homily. The 70-year-old pontiff had been cautious with his statement; he did not mention any leaders but expressed desire for peace and concern for Christian lives. He said that more than a million people had been forced to flee their homes and urged the warring parties to engage in peace.
US officials have been accused of invoking religious language in support of the military campaign. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a prayer service on Pentagon, reportedly called for “overwhelming violence of action” against US enemies. A similar rhetoric is being used by Russia by framing the war in Ukraine as a “Holy War” against Western corruption. The same is also being used in Israel, where a faction of Jewish believers are looking forward to the return of the messiah, a future Jewish King and a direct descendant of King David. Ironically, each of the three Abrahamic religion has almost similar eschatology where there is a return of Christ/ Isa and the twelfth Imam Mahdi to defeat the Antichrist/Dajjal in the war of Gog and Magog.
