Catholic convert Vance seeks to play down Trump's since-deleted image of himself as Jesus-like figure.US vice president JD Vance has waded into the dispute between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV, urging the Vatican to confine itself to matters of morality and church affairs rather than commenting on American foreign policy.Vance was questioned on Fox News about the feud in his capacity as a Catholic convert. He heaped praise on Trump for not being "filtered" before arguing that it is "totally reasonable" for the president to have "disagreements" with Leo. He said: "In some cases, it would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what's going on in the Catholic Church, and let the president of the United States stick to dictating American public policy." He sought to play down the significance of the rift, adding: "I don't worry about it too much. I think it's a natural thing - it's not that big of a deal." Trump as Jesus Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, was also pressed about a since-deleted AI-generated image posted by Trump that appeared to depict the president as Jesus Christ curing the sick. Repeatedly calling the matter not "newsworthy," Vance insisted that Trump was "posting a joke" and said he "took it down because he recognised that a lot of people weren't understanding his humour." Trump himself had claimed earlier that day that he thought the image - widely viewed as blasphemous - was depicting him "as a doctor, making people better." Trump's attack on Pope Leo The backdrop to Vance's intervention was Trump's scathing attack branding Pope Leo "WEAK on crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy," which itself followed the pontiff's condemnation of Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilisation as "truly unacceptable." On Monday, departing on an apostolic journey to Africa, Pope Leo shrugged off the attacks, saying he had "no fear of the Trump administration" and reaffirming his commitment to the Gospel message of peace. Backlash in Italy Trump's attack on the pontiff and the image presenting himself in the style of Jesus sparked a major backlash in Italy, including among the country's top politicians, all of whom defended Pope Leo. "Attacking the pope, a symbol of peace and spiritual guide for billions of Catholics, doesn't seem like a useful or intelligent thing to do", deputy premier Matteo Salvini said, without mentioning Trump by name. Prime minister Giorgia Meloni went further - albeit belatedly - stating: "I find President Trump's words toward the Holy Father unacceptable. The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal that he calls for peace and condemns all forms of war." Photo credit: Phil Mistry / Shutterstock.com

US vice president JD Vance has waded into the dispute between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV, urging the Vatican to confine itself to matters of morality and church affairs rather than commenting on American foreign policy. Vance was questioned on Fox News about the feud in his capacity as a Catholic convert. He heaped praise on Trump for not being "filtered" before arguing that it is "totally reasonable" for the president to have "disagreements" with Leo. He said: "In some cases, it would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what's going on in the Catholic Church, and let the president of the United States stick to dictating American public policy." He sought to play down the significance of the rift, adding: "I don't worry about it too much. I think it's a natural thing - it's not that big of a deal." Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, was also pressed about a since-deleted AI-generated image posted by Trump that appeared to depict the president as Jesus Christ curing the sick. Repeatedly calling the matter not "newsworthy," Vance insisted that Trump was "posting a joke" and said he "took it down because he recognised that a lot of people weren't understanding his humour." Trump himself had claimed earlier that day that he thought the image - widely viewed as blasphemous - was depicting him "as a doctor, making people better." The backdrop to Vance's intervention was  branding Pope Leo "WEAK on crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy," which itself followed the pontiff's condemnation of Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilisation as "." On Monday, departing on an apostolic journey to Africa, Pope Leo shrugged off the attacks, saying he had "" and reaffirming his commitment to the Gospel message of peace. Trump's attack on the pontiff and the image presenting himself in the style of Jesus sparked a , all of whom defended Pope Leo. "Attacking the pope, a symbol of peace and spiritual guide for billions of Catholics, doesn't seem like a useful or intelligent thing to do", deputy premier Matteo Salvini said, without mentioning Trump by name. Prime minister Giorgia Meloni went further - albeit belatedly - stating: "I find President Trump's words toward the Holy Father unacceptable. The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, and it is right and normal that he calls for peace and condemns all forms of war." Photo credit: Phil Mistry / Shutterstock.com