Global Church Leaders, Including Cardinal Müller, Continue to Unite Behind Pope Leo| National Catholic Register

The number of international Church leaders who have come to the defense of Pope Leo XIV following President Donald Trump’s verbal attacks continues to grow and now includes Cardinal Gerhard Müller.

Cardinal Müller, a former prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, said that no one has the right to criticize the Pope when he is faithfully bearing witness to the Gospel of peace, adding that nobody should exploit the name of God for their own interests. 

“No one can expect anything other from the Holy Father than his commitment to earthly peace among peoples,” the cardinal said in a statement published Tuesday by the Austrian Catholic website Kath.net.

Cardinal Müller also stressed that he and all cardinals have promised obedience to the Pope and “to stand up for him and the Church of Christ even at the cost of our own lives.”  The German cardinal also reflected on the ethical complexities of restraining dangerous regimes like Iran’s while avoiding the moral pitfalls of waging war.

Through his statement, Cardinal Müller joined a number of other Church leaders outside the U.S. who have pushed back against Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo’s opposition of the Iran war, originally communicated via social media on April 12. 

Trump accused the Pope of being “terrible for foreign policy” and suggested that the Pontiff believes it is “OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.” He also criticized Leo for being too political and suggested the first-ever American Pontiff had only been elected pope last year to counterbalance his leadership.

Other Church Leaders Add Support

Others who have come to the defense of Pope Leo include Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the vicar general of Rome, who released an April 13 statement of “full support” for the Pope “in the face of disconcerting attacks on his teaching of peace.” The Gospel of the Beatitudes, he added, “is the very essence of the Church’s mission, and no one and nothing, deluded by the illusory glimmer of arrogance, will be able to stand in its way.”

The Italian bishops’ conference, led by Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, also expressed “regret for the words addressed” to Pope Leo XIV, explicitly backing U.S. bishops’ conference president Archbishop Paul Coakley’s defense of the Pope and affirming his role as Successor of Peter serving the Gospel, truth and peace.

Cardinal Fernando Chomalí, the archbishop of Santiago, Chile, defended Pope Leo, describing him as a “good man” and a “coherent leader.”

In England, Archbishop Richard Moth of Westminster said he was offering Pope Leo XIV his prayers and support as the Pope began his visit to Africa, praising his repeated appeals for peace and reconciliation. He warned against indifference to war and suffering, saying humanity is scarred by injustice and that the Church must keep praying for peace, justice and the Holy Father.

The day before, Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark had urged prayers for Pope Leo. “Our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV is showing the world that in the face of war, God demands peace,” he said. The Pope has made clear, he added, that “we cannot stand by and allow the message of the Gospel to be abused.” 

Scotland’s bishops praised Pope Leo’s “clear and consistent” call for peace, saying his leadership is a guiding light at a critical moment. “Let us silence the weapons, so that the voice of humanity may be heard,” they said. “Let us choose encounter over confrontation, and the courage of peace over the illusion of power.”

The widespread response of international Church leaders, including those who hold different ecclesial points of view, reflects the reaction that has taken place among the U.S. episcopacy. Critics of Trump’s attack have included Cardinals Blase Cupich of Chicago and Joseph Tobin of Newark, as well as Bishops Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester and Michael Burbidge of Arlington.

Pope Leo himself responded to President Trump’s reproach on April 13, at the start of his apostolic visit to Africa. Replying to a journalist’s question, the Pontiff said he had no fear of the Trump administration, nor of preaching the Gospel, and denounced the use of God’s name to justify war.

The American-born Pontiff vowed to continue speaking out “strongly against war, seeking to promote peace, dialogue and multilateralism among states to find solutions to problems.”  Too many people, he said, were suffering and too many innocent lives were being lost. 

‘Just-War’ Considerations

In his comments, Cardinal Müller acknowledged that as the world’s superpower, the United States “bears a special historical responsibility for peace, freedom, and the well-being of humanity in our global world.” 

That responsibility, he said, includes “containing dangerous regimes,” and, within the bounds of international law, combating “brutal crimes against one’s own people and other peoples” through sanctions and military force. 

The Iranian regime is accused of massacring thousands of protesters, with the Iranian government itself putting the number at 3,117 people, while human rights groups say the estimates exceed 7,000.

Cardinal Müller warned against a “policy of appeasement” that turned out to be a “catastrophe” with regards to Hitler and said the Iranian regime “must be denounced worldwide” for abusing religion to justify the murder of innocents. 

But he added that while destroying the military capabilities of dictatorial regimes, including nuclear weapons, can be morally justified or even necessary, the tragic reality is that war cannot be “clean” and that those who fight often bear moral guilt. 

“In this specific case,” he said, “it must be clearly stated that no one has the right to criticize the Pope when he faithfully follows the mission he received from Christ to bear witness to the Gospel of peace.”

“Christ’s message transcends political interests, and God is our judge,” he added. “And no mortal may presume to exploit the name of God for his own interests. Even a good end does not justify bad means. We can only work and pray for peace, but not at any price; rather, for a just peace — including for the Iranian people, that they may be freed from a reign of terror.” 

Cardinal Müller said Israel’s right to exist “must never be called into question,” adding that he hoped military force would no longer be needed. “Pope Leo XIV,” he said as a reminder, “began his apostolic ministry with the biblical greeting to all people of good will, saying: ‘Peace be with you!’”