Letters from Leo — the American Pope & US Politics

Letters from Leo — the American Pope & US Politics

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Pope Leo XIV Warns Media Against Becoming War Propagandists
After Cupich called the White House's Iran war video “sickening,” the pope echoed his language in a pointed address to broadcasters — as the FCC…
Pope Leo Meets Opus Dei Investigator Gareth Gore in Rare Vatican Audience
The pope sat with the British journalist for over forty minutes in the apostolic library — and Gore asked him to shut the organization down if the…
 • Christopher Hale
JD Vance’s Top Donor Brings His War on the Pope to Rome
The billionaire behind JD Vance’s political rise delivered invite-only Antichrist lectures blocks from the Vatican — and Catholic institutions rushed to…
 • Christopher Hale
“God Cannot Be Enlisted in Darkness” — Pope Leo XIV Demands Ceasefire in Iran
Days after Pete Hegseth said the U.S. war in Iran is protected by God, Pope Leo XIV denounced those who “involve the name of God in choices of death.”
 • Christopher Hale
Did the Pope Conspire to Kill Abraham Lincoln?
Inside a 160-year old conspiracy theory that has received new life in recent days.
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo is challenging MAGA authoritarianism. Get the story no one else is telling — free in your inbox.

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“Go to Confession” — Pope Leo XIV Challenges Christian Leaders Behind War
The pope asked whether leaders responsible for armed conflict have the courage to examine their consciences. The timing was unmistakable.
 • Christopher Hale
The Night the Church Changed Forever
On March 13, 2013, a Jesuit from Buenos Aires stepped onto the loggia of St. Peter's and subverted 1200 years of papal ceremony with a single act of…
 • Christopher Hale
Pete Hegseth’s Pastor Wants to Ban Catholic Processions in America
Doug Wilson preached at the Pentagon last month. His vision of a Christian nation would outlaw public Masses, Marian processions, and Corpus Christi…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV Takes On Mar-a-Lago Face, Looksmaxxing, and America’s “Cult of the Body”
A sweeping Vatican document approved by the pope warns that the obsession with surgical perfection is an attempt to escape what it means to be human.
 • Christopher Hale
“A True Shepherd” — Pope Leo XIV Honors the Priest Israel Killed in Southern Lebanon
The Maronite priest killed by Israeli tank fire in Lebanon was laid to rest as the pope eulogized him at the Vatican — and a widening war creeps closer…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV Ousts Bishop Accused of Stealing $270,000 — Then Forces Out the Cardinal Who Tried to Shield Him
Bishop Emanuel Shaleta was arrested fleeing the country with cash in his luggage. Cardinal Louis Sako is gone too — and the timing is not a coincidence.
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV Tells Rome’s Priests: No AI Homilies, No TikTok Priesthood
As Block fires 4,000 workers and Anthropic battles the Pentagon, the pope delivered a message Silicon Valley should hear — stop outsourcing your soul to…
 • Christopher Hale
Cardinal McElroy Declares the War in Iran “Not Morally Legitimate” — And He's Not Alone
From Chicago to Arkansas, American bishops are unifying under Pope Leo XIV to challenge the moral foundations of the U.S.-Israeli campaign in Iran.
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV Mourns Maronite Priest Killed by Israeli Tank Fire in Southern Lebanon
Father Pierre el-Rahi ran toward the wounded after a Merkava tank shelled a home in Qlayaa. A second shell killed him. The Vatican named him within…
 • Christopher Hale
Pope Leo XIV and Stephen Colbert Are the Only Things Americans Actually Like
A new NBC poll finds the pope and the comedian at the top — with ICE, AI, and every major politician underwater.
 • Christopher Hale
“It’s Sickening” — Cardinal Cupich Blasts White House for Gamifying War
From the streets of Chicago to the halls of the Vatican, Pope Leo’s hometown cardinal is waging one of the most sustained moral confrontation with an…
 • Christopher Hale
“Weapons Must Fall Silent” — Pope Leo XIV Again Demands Peace in Iran
Altar girls, a young woman's embrace, and a fourth call for peace in Iran — how Pope Leo XIV marked International Women's Day.
 • 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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