Letters from Leo — the American Pope & US Politics

Letters from Leo — the American Pope & US Politics

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There Will Be No Second Avignon: Americans Stand With Pope Leo XIV
A senior Pentagon official invoked the Avignon Papacy against Pope Leo’s ambassador — the French Crown’s campaign that ended with a pope murdered. We…
 • Christopher Hale
The Pentagon Threatened Pope Leo XIV’s Ambassador With the Avignon Papacy
The Free Press has documented a closed-door Pentagon meeting in which a senior Trump official lectured Pope Leo XIV’s ambassador on American military…
 • Christopher Hale
Trump Backs Down Hours After Pope Leo XIV Called His Iran Threat “Unacceptable”
A two-week ceasefire is now on the table after Leo’s rebuke and more than 15,000 calls and emails from the this community — but Netanyahu is already…
 • Christopher Hale
“Contact Your Congressmen” — Pope Leo XIV Enlists Americans to End the Iran War After Suggesting Trump War Crimes
The pope’s direct appeal to citizens landed as Archbishop Paul Coakley, the USCCB president, called on Trump to “step back from the precipice” and…
 • Christopher Hale
“A Whole Civilization Will Die Tonight” — Trump Invokes God for Iran Annihilation as Pope Leo XIV Stands Alone
Trump said God supports his war while Hegseth compared a rescued pilot to the resurrection of Jesus Christ — and Vance signaled “every tool” is on the…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo is challenging MAGA authoritarianism. Get the story no one else is telling — free in your inbox.

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While Trump Promises Hell on Earth, Pope Leo XIV Preaches Peace
From Isaiah’s rebuke on Palm Sunday to “Lay down your weapons!” on Easter morning, the pope chose the poor over empire. An Easter letter about our…
 • Christopher Hale
“Lay Down Your Weapons!” — Pope Leo XIV Decries War in First Easter Address
Leo XIV’s Urbi et Orbi capped a Holy Week in which the Catholic Church challenged the Trump-Vance White House’s Iran War at every turn — from Palm…
 • Christopher Hale
“Man Can Kill the Body, But Not Love” — Pope Leo XIV’s First Easter Vigil Homily Confronts the Powers of Death
The pope stood in St. Peter’s Basilica on Holy Saturday night and declared that no tomb can imprison the God of love. His message to a world at war…
 • Christopher Hale
A Letter to New Catholics Entering the Church Tonight
Thousands will be baptized, confirmed, and received into the Catholic Church at Easter Vigil Masses tonight. This is what I wish someone had told me…
 • Christopher Hale
Trump-Vance White House Escalates Holy Week Assault Against Catholic Church
A judge forced ICE to open the doors. On Holy Thursday, four priests washed the feet of fourteen detained migrants. The next morning, the Pentagon…
 • Christopher Hale
“Not Sponsored by the Lord” — Military Archbishop Broglio Declares Iran War Unjust
The military archbishop told Catholic troops to “do as little harm as you can” — and rebuked Pete Hegseth’s invocation of Jesus from the Pentagon press…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV Condemns the “Imperialist Occupation of the World” in Holy Thursday Homilies
In two addresses at the Vatican, the pope invoked Óscar Romero, quoted Pope Francis on the duty of humble love, and called Christians to kneel alongside…
 • Christopher Hale
Bishop Barron Rewrites Pope Leo’s Anti-War Message on Ben Shapiro’s Show
After being in the White House as Trump was compared to the risen Christ, Barron told Shapiro the pope’s Palm Sunday rebuke wasn’t about Iran — and the…
 • Christopher Hale
“You Rose Up” — Leaked Video Shows Bishop Barron Clapping as Trump Was Compared to Christ
Barron co-hosted the event during Holy Week, abandoning his Minnesota flock for a 64-minute spectacle where clergy cast Trump as a figure of the risen…
 • Christopher Hale
“A Lion Who Knows When to Roar” — Christopher Lamb’s Revelatory Portrait of Pope Leo XIV
Christopher Lamb spent two decades covering the Vatican. His account of Leo’s first year draws on interviews with cardinals, diplomats, and members of…
 • Christopher Hale
“Look For An Off Ramp” — Pope Leo XIV Implores Trump to End War by Easter
The pope walked out of Castel Gandolfo on Tuesday and offered the president a path toward ending the Iran war.
 • Christopher Hale
JD Vance, Rebuked by Two Popes, Publishes a Book About Finding God
The vice president's “Communion” promises a religious memoir. His actual Catholic record tells a different story.
 • Christopher Hale

Pope Leo's Life & Formation

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Villanova Days: How College Shaped Pope Leo XIV
Before he was the pope railing against a “throwaway culture,” he was Bob Prevost, a quiet and nerdy math major at Villanova University with a passion…
 • Christopher Hale
The Pope’s Closest Aide Is a Millennial from Peru
The charismatic young priest’s close bond with Leo — from the villages of Peru to the halls of the Vatican — has already won him a following among the…
 • Christopher Hale
How Peru Made Pope Leo XIV
New revelations from Pope Leo XIV’s years in South America show why his gentle style hides a radical vision for the Church and the world.
How Pope Leo Faced Corrupt Politicians and Economic Collapse in Peru — and Built Hope Instead
Long before he was Pope Leo XIV, Fr. Roberto Prevost learned what real power in the fact looks like: presence, patience, and courage.
Pope Leo's Hidden Years in Trujillo: The Theology of Friendship in the Making the First American Pope
In this two part series, we'll explore a new book that gives us the deepest insight ever to the young Fr. Robert Prevost's time as a missionary priest…
 • Christopher Hale
“He Corrects Me When I'm Wrong” — Pope Leo’s MAGA Brother Breaks Silence
It’s the first interview Pope Leo’s outspoken brother has given since a flurry of media appearances right after Leo’s election. Louis Prevost, a proud…
 • Christopher Hale
The Pope of “New Things”: Leo XIII’s Legacy in Pope Leo XIV’s Vision
From Rerum Novarum to the age of artificial intelligence: Pope Leo XIV says he chose his name to carry forward Leo XIII’s mission of confronting the…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo vs. the Empire of Lies: The Long Game to Defeat Trumpism
He’s already rebuked immigration crackdowns and blasted the “logic of exclusion” fueling rising nationalism. Now, as the youngest pope in 35 years, Leo…
 • Christopher Hale

Letters from Leo — the American Pope & US Politics

Letters from Leo is a chronicle of how Pope Leo XIV’s papacy intersects with American politics, faith, and the digital age during the presidency of Donald Trump.
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