Yaoundé, Cameroon
Pope Leo XIV stated Wednesday that his visit to Africa provides a message of unity and peace “the world needs to hear” as he continues to face criticism from the US president and vice chairman for his stance on the struggle in Iran.
Speaking on board the papal aircraft from Algeria to Cameroon, Leo pointed to his go to to the Great Mosque of Algiers, the most important in Africa, and to the birthplace of Saint Augustine of Hippo, a massively influential Christian determine who impressed him to change into a priest.
The mosque go to confirmed that whereas “we have different beliefs, we have different ways of worshipping, we have different ways of living, we can live together in peace,” the pontiff stated.
He added: “I think that to promote that kind of image is something which the world needs to hear today.”
Trump hits again in struggle of phrases towards Pope Leo
President Donald Trump has once more criticized Pope Leo on social media, persevering with an ongoing struggle of phrases towards the pontiff.
Leo started his Africa journey in Algeria, a Muslim-majority nation, after criticizing the US army operation in Iran. The pope’s rising criticism has underlined his stance as a counterweight to the Trump administration.
Leo’s willingness to name out the US president on the world stage marks a major escalation in tensions between Washington and the Vatican. Trump and his vice chairman, JD Vance, have issued a collection of sharp statements this week aimed on the head of the Catholic Church, who declared he has “no fear of the Trump administration” and reveals no signal of backing down.
The pope departed for Africa simply hours after Trump launched an extraordinary broadside towards him and his stance on the struggle. The president subsequently posted a picture of himself seemingly as a Jesus-like determine. The picture was later deleted.
Vance, a Catholic, weighed in at a Turning Point USA occasion on Tuesday, saying the pope must be “careful” when speaking about theology. Vance additionally questioned the pontiff’s understanding of “just war” idea, which units the standards for a morally justifiable battle and was developed over centuries by Catholic thinkers.
A key architect of “just war” educating is Saint Augustine of Hippo, whom Leo honored whereas in Algeria. Augustine, a bishop within the late fourth and early fifth centuries, is the religious father of the Augustinian order of which the pontiff is a member and former chief.
Leo careworn that Augustine remains to be “an important figure” via his writings, teachings and spirituality.
“His invitation to search for God and for truth is something that is very much needed today,” Leo, talking in English, stated on board the aircraft from Algiers to Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon. He identified that Augustine’s reminiscence is honored in Algeria, regardless that the bulk of Algerians are Muslims.
Pope Leo XIV provides message of unity after Algeria go to
Saint Augustine, the pope stated, provides “the church and the world” a imaginative and prescient that features the “struggle to build community, to seek for unity among all peoples, and respect for all peoples, in spite of the differences.”
Trump confirmed no signal of wanting to again away from his feud Tuesday evening, saying it was “unacceptable” for Tehran to have a nuclear bomb.
“Will someone please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed, protesters in the last two months, and that for Iran to have a Nuclear Bomb is absolutely unacceptable,” Trump wrote in a put up on Truth Social. It was not instantly clear the place Trump acquired his determine.
In footage: Pope Leo’s journey to Africa
Leo, who’s the primary pontiff to go to Algeria, expressed his gratitude to the Algerian authorities for making the journey potential. He additionally paid tribute to the small however vital presence of the Catholic Church in Algeria.
While in Cameroon, he addressed the battle within the nation between the Francophone authorities and English-speaking separatists, and he’ll participate in a peace assembly.
Speaking on the Presidential Palance in Yaoundé in entrance of the nation’s President, Paul Biya, Leo urged authorities to keep away from corrupt practices.
“In order for peace and justice to prevail, the chains of corruption — which disfigure authority and strip it of its credibility — must be broken,” he stated.
And an “authentic peace” can take maintain solely when “the law serves as a secure safeguard against the whims of the rich and powerful,” he added.
English-speaking separatists in Cameroon introduced a three-day pause in preventing to allow the pope to have “safe travel” and ship his message of peace, in accordance to the Associated Press.
The pope’s Africa journey additionally contains visits to Angola and Equatorial Guinea and concludes on April 23.