Pope Leo XIV on Palm Sunday wasn't having any of Pete Hegseth's pro-war payer blather when he delivered his sermon. The Pope made it clear God was not on the side of the white nationalist warmongers inhabiting the Trump administration as they wage their illegal war and hope for outside benediction.
Recall Hegseth, an unqualified termite that Pentagon insiders have dubbed "the dumbo McNamara' , spouted in an interview with CBS News’s “60 Minutes” that "God" was on the side of the U.S. aggressors and warmongers, yapping:
“The providence of our almighty God is there protecting those troops, and we’re committed to this mission.”
But Pope Leo XIV during a Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, had different ideas backed up by actual theology. Indeed, Leo delivered an unusually forceful condemnation of war as the conflict with Iran entered its second month. Speaking to tens of thousands of worshippers, the pontiff said Jesus cannot be used to justify violence and cited a biblical passage saying "God will not listen to prayers from those whose hands are full of blood.”
The pope did not name specific political leaders but has steadily sharpened his criticism of Trump's war in recent weeks, repeatedly calling for an immediate ceasefire. He also lamented that Christians in the Middle East were suffering the consequences of what he described as an “atrocious” conflict and warned that some may not be able to fully observe Easter.
Leo's words in his sermon were words even a bozo like Pete Hegseth could grasp:
"Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace,
who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not
listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them.”
Leo emphasized that Jesus rejected violence even at the moment
of his arrest, referencing a biblical account in which Christ rebuked a
follower for drawing a sword.
“He did not arm himself, or defend himself, or fight any war" adding that "Jesus instead revealed a God who “always rejects
violence.”
Can Hegseth, Trump and their war monger evangelicals pining for Armageddon understand that? I doubt it. In fact, in one of his demented Trash Social posts early Monday, Trump himself proved he wasn't on the side of a deity - Christian or other - so all those prayers mean no more than an ounce of lickspittle. Specifically, Trump, aka Hitler Junior, wrote :
“If for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘Open for Business,’ we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!), which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched,’”
But as NY Times national security columnist W.J. Hennigan observed ('America is Abandoning Morality'):
"Trump’s ultimatum is a contemptible departure from the
restraint that most wartime presidents have strived for. The bombing campaign
Mr. Trump described holds the potential to affect millions of Iranian
civilians, inflicting long-term consequences on their access to water,
electricity and other necessities. Such an attack order should never be given —
in public or private.
His proposal, if acted upon, would almost certainly amount to a war crime."
Hennigan goes on after quoting a Professor Robert Goldman in The War Crimes Research Office at American University:
"This glorification of carnage has been echoed in the White House’s social media channels, which in recent weeks have published a series of stomach-churning propaganda clips that feature real footage of airstrikes in Iran cut with cartoons and scenes from video games and movies — all edited to guitar lick-laden soundtracks. War may appear super cool to Trump administration staffers who watch it from 6,000 miles away through a pop-culture viewfinder, but the rest of us should examine the human reality — and cost — of combat."
Trump’s criminal -infested White House, meanwhile, pushed back Monday after Pope Leo XIV made his Palm Sunday remarks, with bimbo press secretary Karoline Leavitt defending the warmonger Hegseth’s use of prayer in reference to U.S. military operations.
The semi-educated blonde airhead actually spouted:
“Our nation was a nation founded 250 years ago almost on
Judeo-Christian values. And we have seen presidents, the leaders of the
Department of War, and our troops go to prayer during the most turbulent times
in our nations history, and I don’t think there is anything wrong with our
military leaders or with the president calling on the American people to pray
for our service members overseas.”
Totally wrong on all counts given this nation was founded on the basis of Deism not Judeo-Christian theism.
"As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries"
Karoline probably can't understand that so let me explain. Our nation's founders, like Jefferson, Hamilton, Madison were Deists, not orthodox Christians. In the Deist view an innominate, impersonal Intelligence created the cosmos - but then detached from it - so there's no further involvement. If detached it can have no enmity against other religions or their laws etc. as the Treaty of Tripoli notes.
If Karoline needs a simplified analogy, the Deist God is analogous to an intelligent child who makes a toy with a
gear wheel, winds it up and releases it. The toy has the ability to move after being wound up and
released. Thus, the child makes the toy, winds it up, releases it down the
sidewalk, then walks away never to glance at it or its final outcome,
destination.
We know nearly all the Founders - the actual authors of the Constitution - were
hard core Deists, not Christians. The Pope's message was timely given that leaders on all sides of the Iran war have tried to use religion to justify their unconscionable actions. Chief among these is frat boy white supremacist Pete Hegseth. Who actually invoked a white nationalist end time extremist form of Christianity to try to paint the U.S. as a "Christian nation" trying to vanquish all its evil foes with military might. E.g. Hegseth: "Please Lord, let all OUR weapons find their mark!"
But if Leo's message is on target, all the military might summoned by the Trump traitors, pedos and warmongers will not make a dent in the ongoing conflict, especially if Hitler Jr. commits war crimes.
See also any or all of these Youtube videos:
Trump has 'no idea' what he’s gotten into on Iran | David Cay Johnston
“America Walked Into a Strategic Trap — And Now It Can’t Escape Prof Jiang Analysis”
THIS WAR IS TURNING INTO AMERICA’S NIGHTMARE. | Prof. John Mearsheimer
Professor Pape: Iran Is 'VIETNAM ON STEROIDS'
Mayhap, Petey wants to rethink his prayers.
See Also:
Pete Hegseth is carrying out a Holy War at the Pentagon and abroad. He has rightly come under fire for incompetent leadership and mediocre management of the Iran war. The war was a mistake in the first place, both because Iran did not pose an immediate threat to US interests, and because President Donald Trump assumed a rapid victory and regime change would secure oil for the US and its allies for decades to come. But motivated by Christian Nationalism, fueled by angry masculinity, and blinded by ideological certainty, Hegseth’s crusade was doomed to failure from the start. Within the Pentagon, the battle against “woke” ideas and diversity has shaken leadership and hurt morale.
On the international front, Hegseth’s religious conviction about the immorality of Iran’s Islamic leadership led him to the conclusion that his god would protect the US in any war. Yet devoid of real goals and plans, motivated by ignorance about Iranian society, and discarding the intelligence community’s dire warnings about the chances of failure, Hegseth pushed on. The US now finds itself in a long-term war waged by an angry Fox journalist, not a competent secretary of defense.
