Rev Spadaro informed the BBC that whereas dialogue was occurring behind the scenes in “places of power”, the Pope additionally needed to make public pronouncements in opposition to the battle to “mark the moral limit” of what was acceptable.
So what is the view from Vatican City about some convergence between US Catholics on the left and proper in their backing of Pope Leo’s anti-warfare messaging?
“He does not unite everyone, of course,” says Rev Spadaro. “But Pope Leo moves the Catholic debate away from a purely partisan track.”
There are questions on why President Trump would put up an AI picture that was sure to alienate and offend a few of his supporters. Unusually, he did again down and delete it.
And there are questions concerning the the motive of the tirade in opposition to Pope Leo. For some, it seemed to be designed to decrease the Pope’s opposition to the warfare.
“But in trying to delegitimise, Trump’s attack implicitly acknowledges the weight of the pope’s moral voice,” says the Vatican’s Rev Spadaro.
“If Leo were irrelevant, he would not deserve a word. Instead, he is invoked, named, opposed – a sign that his words matter.”
