The Pope’s Most Remarkable Week Yet — And MAGA’s Most Furious Meltdown

From abortion to immigration to climate change, Leo made clear the Gospel is bigger than MAGA politics.

This week, this simple Venn diagram went viral on social media: two non‐overlapping circles labeled “Catholic Theology” and “MAGA.”

The image well captures Pope Leo XIV’s message: these two things are not the same, and never were.

In public comments this week, the pope put into words what many had already known: true Catholic teaching cannot be reduced to a partisan MAGA platform.

Leo opposes abortion but also calls for compassion on immigrants and an end to the death penalty — positions that mirror centuries of Catholic teaching rather than any political party.

In other words, MAGA politics has no place at the center of the pro‑life Gospel.

Here’s a roundup of what happened this week and Letters from Leo coverage.

Pope Leo’s Defense of Cupich and Durbin

We led the week with Pope Leo’s defense of Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich, who had announced he would honor pro‑choice Senator Dick Durbin for his work on immigration.

Reporters asked Leo if Catholic politicians like Durbin should be rebuked; the pope urged Americans to look at Durbin’s record “in its totality.”

He stressed that Catholic teaching “encompasses many issues:”

“Someone who says I’m against abortion but is in favor of the death penalty is not really pro-life. Someone who says I’m against abortion but… [is] in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants… I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”

In short, the Holy Father defended Cupich’s broad approach and reiterated the Church’s consistent ethic of life.

MAGA Backlash

Naturally, this drew a furious reaction.

Prominent MAGA Catholic figures (from podcasters Matt Walsh and Taylor Marshall to Trump film‐maker Robby Starbuck) took to social media to condemn the pope’s words.

As we detailed, MAGA influencers accused Leo of being a “woke Marxist heretic.”

This only escalated when the pope’s Italian remarks criticizing Pete Hegseth’s military grandstanding pep rally in Virginia.

One of the Letters from Leo headlines called it a “MAGA Meltdown” — a coordinated anti‑Catholic assault from Trump’s camp and alt‑right bloggers.

Press Secretary’s Denial

Even the White House got drawn in. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt — a Catholic — flatly rejected the pope’s framing.

At a briefing, she insisted the administration is “upholding the law” and denied any “inhumane” treatment of immigrants.

That claim is at stark odds with the reports of family separations and harsh detention tactics.

Climate Change as a Moral Issue

Pope Leo also spoke forcefully about climate care this week.

At the Vatican’s Laudato Si’ anniversary celebration, he lamented leaders who still ridicule those who speak of global warming and reminded Catholics that Christians cannot love God while “despising his creatures.”

He explicitly framed climate change as one of the defining moral issues of our time — no less central to Gospel witness than abortion or immigration.

This too prompted pushback from the MAGA fringe, but it simply affirmed the Church’s traditional teaching that caring for creation is part of the pro‑life ethic.

The Pope Leo-MAGA Conflict Goes Global

Reuters noted on Oct. 2 that Leo’s comments had “ended [his] honeymoon” with conservative Catholics, and CNN’s Christopher Lamb ran an analysis on Oct. 4 about the “MAGA ire” his remarks provoked.

So in quick succession, the dismay among some right‑wing Catholics is now news around the world.

Yet, Pope Leo has remained undeterred.

In the face of the backlash, he has chosen the pastoral path: humility, dialogue, and an insistence on unity rooted in truth.

We’re on Team Leo

Letters from Leo stand with the Holy Father in this crucial moment.

This newsletter is part of an effort to defend Pope Leo XIV’s leadership and the Gospel vision he proclaims against the onslaught of hatred and distortion from the MAGA Catholic fringe.

In a time of culture‑war rage, Leo reminds us that the Church’s moral witness transcends partisan allegiances.

We will continue to share, explain, and stand by those teachings, trusting that conscience — not ideology — is the true guide for Catholics today.

Letters from Leo is open to anyone who wants to be informed and inspired by our pope — and to turn that inspiration into action that leaves America and the world more just, less cold, and more alive with hope.

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Thank you for reading. I’ll see you on the road.