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The Vatican vs. MAGA: Pope Leo XIV leads a Catholic resistance against Christian nationalism

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Tensions are quietly escalating in the US between Donald Trump’s “MAGA” base and Christian nationalism on one side, and the Catholic Church under Pope Leo XIV on the other.

According to a report by Vox, the religious right is increasingly utilizing scripture and faith to justify and defend President Trump’s policies and burgeoning Christian nationalist sentiments. In contrast, the American Catholic Church is undergoing a profound transformation under the leadership of Pope Leo XIV.

Through new appointments, directives urging bishops to speak out on immigration, and public statements critical of the US’s trajectory under the Trump administration, the Pope is positioning his bishops and priests as missionaries for human dignity. In doing so, he has established the clergy as a counterbalance to the authoritarian and nationalist tendencies of the right.

While the Church has long played a role in US politics, Christopher Hale—a Catholic author, political activist, and owner of the Letters from Leo blog—argues that Pope Leo’s interventions represent something fundamentally new.

Hale suggests that in the absence of a well-organized “religious left” in the US, Leo’s steps to reform and shake up the American Catholic Church are revitalizing a “Catholic left.” This movement is taking a stand against the moral struggles of the 2020s, particularly regarding immigration and the spread of authoritarianism.

Leo’s plan to reorganize the American Church

According to Hale, Leo’s primary concern was the growing perception of the US Catholic Church as “reactionary.”

In New York, for example, Cardinal Timothy Dolan was known as “personable, charming, and friendly,” yet he was conspicuously identified with the political right.

His successor, Archbishop Ronald Hicks, appears somewhat less comfortable in front of the media but excels in his relationship with parishioners and is widely beloved among lay Catholics.

Hale acknowledges that the liberal dream of “replacing right-wing culture warriors with left-wing culture warriors” is unlikely to be fully realized. However, he points out the importance of recognizing that priests and bishops in the US Catholic Church tend to be significantly more conservative than their international counterparts.

While noting that the Pope attempts to avoid the “culture wars” in the US and does not wish to be “used as a weapon by either the left or the right,” Hale argues it is impossible to ignore Leo when he speaks on immigration and mass deportations.

Will Leo declare war on “MAGA authoritarianism”?

Hale observed that throughout the summer, Leo appeared frustrated by the USCCB (the leadership body of the US Church) for failing to speak with a unified voice, as bishops instead mobilized in a scattered fashion.

“For this reason, in October, he made it very clear that the church could not remain silent and must speak as one on this issue. A month later, the bishops acted almost unanimously, adopting the harshest stance toward the administration seen since the organization’s inception. This would not have happened during the Francis era; it would have been explained away or overlooked. The sensitivity of US bishops—particularly conservative ones—has increased extraordinarily over the past year. They have raised their voices in ways I don’t think they would have during Francis’s papacy.”

Hale further suggests that just as cardinals chose a Polish pope from behind the Soviet “Iron Curtain” to defeat communism, “God has chosen a pope from the Americas to defeat the spread of MAGA authoritarianism.”

“But I want to be very careful: John Paul II did not do this solely for the Polish people, but for the global community.

Similarly, I believe Pope Leo XIV views authoritarianism as something originating from America, but he is working to eliminate it for the benefit of the global community, not just for America’s sake. He reacts as strongly to any American intervention abroad as he does to specific domestic issues.”

Contending that Leo views “authoritarian regimes as a threat to human life,” Hale notes, “While his predecessors spoke extensively about abortion, in the single year Leo has been pope, he has spoken about immigration, war, and ecology a hundred times more often than he has mentioned abortion.”

Christian nationalism: A Protestant-Evangelical alliance against Catholicism

The author argues that the Christian nationalism Trump is associated with has no room for Catholics. “Christian nationalism is evangelical Protestant nationalism. It is vital to understand that the leaders of this movement do not believe Catholics are Christians; they do not believe we can achieve salvation,” he says.

“Christian nationalism and its sibling, MAGA authoritarianism, are inherently anti-Catholic. To be blunt, I am making a classist argument: I am saying that my class and my ethnic identity are excluded from this project. Yes, there is a war; it is a culture war that I welcome. The culture war between multi-ethnic American Catholicism and white evangelical Protestantism is one that the left can win.”

Claiming that the Pope believes the “authoritarian” trend in the US is more dangerous than any other issue, including immigration, Hale asserts, “Even conservative Catholic bishops see the limits of this Christian nationalism project.”

Arguing that they must oppose the Trump administration more directly and cannot rely on the president’s “goodwill and whims,” Hale concludes, “I am not sure of the existence of a religious left in this country, but the second Trump administration has shown me that a Catholic left certainly exists.”

JD Vance in the crosshairs of Catholic criticism

The most direct and sharpest Catholic outcry against the US administration followed the killing of Renee Good by ICE in Minneapolis.

In the aftermath of the killing, the White House—and Vice President JD Vance in particular—faced significant backlash for accusing Good of “terrorism.” In posts on X and during White House briefings, Vance argued that Good’s death was a “tragedy of her own making” and claimed she was “part of a broader leftist network” intent on attacking ICE officers.

In a scathing op-ed published shortly after, the National Catholic Reporter accused Vance of “justifying” Good’s killing, stating his comments were a “moral stain on the collective witness of our Catholic faith.”

Digital editor John Grosso wrote:

“In the past, a politician would offer thoughts and prayers, encourage those reacting to wait for the full results of an investigation, and generally try to calm the atmosphere. A leader could have used the opportunity of a new day to soothe the nation’s broken heart.”

Grosso argued that “as a Catholic,” Vance knows better than to engage in such manipulation and provocation, using harsh terms:

“Vance knows that only God can take a life. Vance knows that protesting, fleeing, or even interfering with an ICE investigation (for which there is no evidence Good did) does not warrant a death penalty. Vance knows that lying and killing are sins.”

The author continued, “He does not care. Vance’s distorted and false understanding of Christianity has been rejected by two popes.”

Grosso further stated that he views Vance’s Catholicism as a “simple tool for his career ambitions and desire for power.”

Immigration policy draws fire from bishops

In 2025, Pope Francis declined to attend an official meeting in the Vatican with Vance, sending Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin in his place to deliver a lecture on “compassion and migrant rights.”

The following day, Francis offered the vice president only a brief Easter greeting.

Francis’s final months were marked by increasingly sharp criticism, describing the mass deportations of the Trump era as “shameful” and “anti-Christian.” Shortly before passing away at the age of 88, he reportedly condemned Vance behind closed doors for the White House’s treatment of migrants.

His successor, Pope Leo XIV, also appears to be distancing himself from Trump’s immigration policy. When Vance traveled to Rome last year to represent the US delegation at Leo’s inauguration mass, the new pope greeted him briefly in public but held private meetings that same day with the presidents of Ukraine and Peru.

A longer meeting with Vance took place a day later, but the Vatican’s statement emphasized humanitarian concerns and “current international issues,” which was interpreted as a subtle signal of disagreement.

Outside of Rome, Catholic criticism of the administration’s immigration campaign has intensified. An article published on the Letters From Leo website stated that the new crackdown policy—supported by Trump’s “ostensibly Catholic Vice President JD Vance”—has led to “increased inhumane treatment” and noted these policies have faced “harsh criticism from two popes and the vast majority of bishops.”

In a lead article titled “Every Catholic Should Resign from ICE,” the text argues: “After a year of inhumane raids and papal condemnations, it is clear that no Catholic can, in good conscience, remain in ICE.”

Pope Leo’s silent resistance to American hegemony

In a speech delivered on January 9, Pope Leo XIV addressed global issues and alluded to his opposition to the Trump administration’s practices.

For example, Leo noted that peace is no longer sought as a gift but “through weapons as a condition for asserting one’s dominance,” and warned that this path “seriously threatens the rule of law.”

“War has come back into fashion, and the passion for war is spreading,” Leo warned, arguing that the principle prohibiting countries from invading their neighbors—established after World War II—has been “completely undermined,” with military force replacing dialogue.

Touching upon the abduction of Nicolas Maduro by the US, the Pope reiterated his call for “respect for the will of the Venezuelan people and the protection of the human and civil rights of all people.”

In his official address, Leo issued a direct jab at the US by condemning “power-based diplomacy” that endangers all peoples.

Following the speech, a tense interaction occurred between the US Ambassador to the Vatican, Brian Burch, and Leo during the formal greetings.

Burch had previously issued a statement suggesting that Leo actually supported Trump, aiming to justify the US invasion of Venezuela.

Like Francis before him, Leo listed conflicts ranging from Ukraine to the Holy Land and called for an immediate ceasefire in war zones.

Furthermore, he called for the revitalization of multilateral institutions, urging the United Nations to refocus on uniting humanity and mitigating the “devastating effects of war.”

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Anthropic uncovers Claude use by Iranian, Houthi, and Russian units

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11/09/2026

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Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has disclosed attempted “abuses” of its Claude AI model ranging from conventional weapons to biological research by state-linked entities, foreign intelligence services, and cybercrime networks, publishing the findings in a detailed threat intelligence report.

A significant portion of the report comprised the development of guided missile software by the Houthis in northern Yemen and the conversion of the model into a military reconnaissance tool by Iran-linked actors seeking to target US naval assets in the Middle East.

Covering the period between December 2025 and August 2026, the report shared details of activities detected across seven primary areas: cyberattacks, influence operations, mass surveillance, conventional weapons development, biological risks, and unauthorised model distillation.

The company announced that it had terminated all accounts violating its rules and shared the resulting data with relevant international counterparts.

According to findings by Anthropic’s Threat Intelligence unit, a weapons cell based in northern Yemen, where the Houthis operate, substituted human software engineers with the Claude Code system across three distinct missile development programmes.

These efforts comprised a tactical rocket equipped with a terminal guidance system powered by a commercial smartphone processor, a multi-stage ballistic missile with a target range exceeding 2,000 kilometres, and missile designs carrying a hypersonic glide vehicle.

The cell utilised the artificial intelligence to adapt open-source autopilot software to the smartphone processor, optimize flight control algorithms, and compile firmware.

Structuring their Claude accounts like a virtual engineering team, the Houthis assigned one account to write code, another to conduct research, and a third to review and audit the written code.

The report noted that the group conducted an actual test launch with a guided rocket in the Yemeni theatre.

Immediately following the failure of the live-fire test, the actors were documented returning to the Claude platform within hours to upload telemetry data and diagnose the cause of the malfunction.

The cell was observed successfully compiling offline simulation tools capable of operating independently even if access to Claude were severed.

Iran tracked US warships and personnel

Another military case detailed in the report involved attempts by Iran-linked cyber actors to target US naval forces in the Middle East.

These actors were found to have scraped open-source military data to draft operational targeting manuals directed against American warships and personnel.

Iran extracted name rosters of American military personnel from the captions of publicly accessible military photographs, monitored vessel and aircraft transponder data, authored code to scan commercial satellite imagery, and mapped vulnerabilities in maritime satellite communication terminals.

Other networks linked to the Tehran government were determined to have developed domestic and regional surveillance systems. A Qom-based unit produced a malicious web browser extension disguised as a prayer-time application to harvest credentials from social network users, funneling the data into a central case management system designated “Arman”.

Additionally, official Iranian institutions reportedly cloned authors’ voices using AI and operated multilingual disinformation networks to lay the groundwork for the supreme leadership succession.

Russia also used it for an autonomous kamikaze drone swarm

The report stated that an independent Russia-based software team developed fully autonomous kamikaze uncrewed aerial vehicle swarm software dubbed “DronDoc” or “Serafim”.

Affiliated with a university connected to the Russian Academy of Sciences, the team was said to have trained the artificial intelligence to distinguish between friendly and hostile elements using footage retrieved from the Ukrainian battlefield.

The developed system was designed with the capability to select targets, execute live human classification, and issue detonation commands without requiring human intervention, with simulations run directly against coordinates in the Donetsk region.

Meanwhile, the Russian-origin “Midnight Blizzard” group targeted the Ukrainian drone supply chain and staged attacks aimed at foreign officials and drone engineers by compromising hotel Wi-Fi networks.

A procurement manager stationed at a design bureau in Moscow was also discovered drafting plans via Claude to circumvent European sanctions. The individual was recorded assembling fraudulent tender and logistics correspondence to transport German-made magnetometers, space-grade photovoltaic sheets, and military aviation oxygen systems into Russia through intermediary firms based in China and Hong Kong.

Biological threats and pathogen engineering

The report disclosed five concrete cases regarding the deployment of artificial intelligence in hazardous biological research. Virologists attached to a military research institute were documented using AI for gain-of-function research aimed at enhancing the transmissibility and immune-evasion capabilities of the mosquito-borne Chikungunya virus.

Similarly, experimental designs were prepared to adapt the H5 avian influenza variant, which carries a 50% mortality rate in humans, to mammals and confer airborne transmission capabilities, while immune-evasion mechanisms of pathogens from the smallpox virus family were modelled.

The identities of paralytic neurotoxins subject to export control lists and haemorrhagic fever virus proteins featured on the World Health Organization’s priority epidemic list were deliberately masked and submitted to the AI for analysis.

In addition, a consultant working on behalf of the Malian State Intelligence Service designed a mass surveillance platform designated “Lakana 360” with the assistance of Claude.

The system was designed to monitor approximately 25 million SIM cards registered across three mobile operators in the country without requiring court orders, intercept audio recordings, and cross-reference records with biometric databases.

Separately, leading Chinese artificial intelligence firms including Alibaba, Moonshot, DeepSeek, Zhipu, and Xiaomi were alleged to have initiated hundreds of millions of unauthorised sessions to extract the logical reasoning chains of Claude models. Moonshot and DeepSeek platforms reportedly routed their own users’ queries secretly through Claude, in the process exposing Chinese police surveillance feeds from hundreds of cameras covering military facilities in Chengdu, internal credentials of Chinese state-owned enterprises, and live database access codes connected to the Russian Defence Ministry to third parties.

Türkiye detail in the report

The report also detailed cases involving the abuse of the Claude AI model, incorporating findings concerning an Istanbul-based technology firm.

In case GTG-84005 of the intelligence report, an operation aimed at commercial election manipulation targeting voters in Malaysia was intercepted.

According to the findings, the operation operated under the guise of a startup providing cyber intelligence and counter-disinformation tools. Anthropic determined that Istanbul-based BBS Bilisim Teknolojileri was behind the infrastructure.

According to documents, the company marketed the architecture as a paid influence operation service styled as a “military-grade, AI-powered, real-time political operations ecosystem”.

Managing roughly 1,000 synthetic X accounts, the system processed demographic and electoral data across 222 parliamentary constituencies in Malaysia, calibrating targeting around sensitive social fault lines including ethnicity, religion, and the monarchy.

The network also circulated content from Russian and Chinese state media masquerading as independent Malaysian news via an artificial media outlet designated “Malaysia Pulse”, while manufacturing fraudulent intelligence dossiers targeting an opposition politician and civil society organisations.

Anthropic reported that the network received a request to generate 1 million artificial impressions in support of the Malaysian Prime Minister and sought to secure a contract with the country’s national communications regulatory authority.

While no evidence emerged that the undertaking succeeded, the associated user accounts were closed and operational digital indicators were shared.

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EU pursues closer ties with Israel on space and air defence

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09/09/2026

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The EU is turning to Israel to bolster its new initiatives in high-tech air defence and space capabilities.

Shimrit Maman, head of the Israel Space Agency, travelled to Brussels this week and met on Tuesday with European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation Ekaterina Zaharieva to discuss key sectors, including artificial intelligence and robotics.

The visit took place ahead of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s first major speech on space, scheduled for Thursday at a summit in Paris.

In the speech, Von der Leyen is expected to warn against mounting hostilities and emphasise the necessity of strengthening Europe’s presence in space.

“It’s very hard to do everything by yourself,” Maman told Politico, adding that the militarization of space is “already happening, it’s just we are not aware of the extent,” and noting that allies are showing growing interest in “dual-use” technologies intended for both civilian and defence purposes:

“One thing we’re working on is early-warning systems. For example, during the last wave [of missile attacks] with Iran, we saw this very clearly. How we were getting the alerts to all the civilians in Israel, and that made the casualties so low. This is part of the system. We’re working on a very holistic view, where you can alert in advance, the system alerts the citizens.”

Following several years of effective disengagement caused by political tensions surrounding the invasion of Gaza, the EU has recently begun forging closer military and technological ties with Israel through a series of agreements.

Competition from Washington and strategic rivalry with Moscow and Beijing have nevertheless underlined the requirement for allies possessing sophisticated industrial capacity.

In 2024, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen backed calls by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to create an EU-funded air defence shield.

Three senior officials involved in the discussions said, however, that the plans stalled after officials in the Commission and several national capitals concluded that the project would require reliance on Israeli air defence technology, which was considered too sensitive one year into the Gaza conflict.

Yet Israel’s Rafael, which is expanding its European operations significantly, has now confirmed that it will open a factory to manufacture the Iron Dome air defence system at a former Volkswagen plant in Germany.

One week ago, Greece signed a 3 billion euro agreement with the Israel Ministry of Defense.

The deal provides for the establishment of a new multi-layered air defence network designed to shoot down drones, hostile jets, and rockets.

“We see everything integrating into this multi-layer defence approach,” Maman said, highlighting satellite imagery and artificial intelligence modelling as primary focal points for joint development efforts:

“I’m not only seeing defence as ballistic missiles from Iran… think about a fire, a flash flood or even a long drought… we have a proven track record, and we’re getting really good results.”

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UK reassures US that new Israeli settlement sanctions are symbolic

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08/09/2026

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The UK has reportedly engaged in behind-the-scenes talks to avoid a backlash from the US over anti-Israel sanctions scheduled for announcement today.

According to a report by Bloomberg, Andy Burnham’s government is expected to ban trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank today.

Burnham is seeking to pursue a firmer stance on an issue of high importance to the governing Labour Party, though one that risks angering US President Donald Trump.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband will unveil a new sanctions regime targeting Israel but limited to Jewish settlements in the West Bank, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Burnham and Trump spoke by telephone on Monday, the Prime Minister’s Office said. A statement noted that the two leaders discussed a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The discussion suggests that Burnham used the call to notify Trump that sanctions against Israel were imminent.

The proposals under review included a new sanctions regime with measures to block the exchange of goods and services with Israeli settlements.

Miliband also evaluated expanding existing human rights sanctions to encompass the blocking of aid, which has drawn criticism for exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary further considered explicitly endorsing the International Court of Justice’s non-binding 2024 opinion that declared Israel’s occupation of territory currently recognised by the UK as the State of Palestine to be unlawful.

Even so, UK officials fear the announcement could cause an early setback in Burnham’s relationship with Trump.

To defuse a backlash from the Trump administration, British diplomats privately informed the US that the sanctions are largely symbolic and will have no tangible impact on the UK’s broader trade or security ties with Israel, according to sources familiar with the discussions.

The proposals were drawn up after Israel decided to issue tenders for the construction of 1,200 settlement housing units in an area of the West Bank.

Disputes between Israeli settlers and Palestinians have intensified in recent months as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a difficult battle to retain his seat in a general election scheduled for 27 October.

Burnham joined the leaders of Canada and five European governments, including France, Germany, and Italy, in signing a statement that condemned the housing plan as “unacceptable” and urged Netanyahu to withdraw the tender.

In a separate statement, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned a call by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir for “nightly assassinations” in Gaza.

Burnham is eager to demonstrate early to the Labour Party that he is adopting a more critical approach toward Israel than his predecessor, Keir Starmer.

Although Starmer hardened his stance against Israel during his two years in office, including by formally recognising the State of Palestine, his initial refusal to demand that Netanyahu halt military operations in Gaza divided the party.

This division led to a decline in Labour’s poll ratings and boosted electoral gains for the Green Party across the country.

Burnham’s return to Parliament last month led to Starmer’s resignation. Burnham apologised for Labour’s handling of Israel’s military operation in Gaza under his predecessor, stating that the party “did not adopt the right stance”.

Last month, Burnham’s new Defence Secretary, Wes Streeting, who faced intense competition from a Muslim independent candidate in his northeast London constituency at the last general election, stated that Israel had fallen “short” of international standards.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told the BBC’s “Newsday” programme that there would “undoubtedly” be a US response.

Accusing the Labour Party of “discriminating against the Israeli government”, Huckabee said: “It is like throwing a rock and not knowing where it lands. The UK is a sovereign country and can do as it pleases, but so is the US.”

Republican Florida Congressman Randy Fine also warned that British firms would be barred from doing business with local governments in the state if sanctions were imposed.

In a post on X, Fine said: “Florida has made its stance clear. Any company—or country—that boycotts Israel will be boycotted by Florida.”

Labour MPs and Jewish groups have warned the government that any sanctions against the settlements could amount to a “de facto boycott” of Israeli goods and compromise the safety of British Jews.

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