A war of words escalated between Pope Leo XIV and President Donald Trump early this month when the president promised that "a whole civilization will die" if Iran didn't make a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a statement the pope found "truly unacceptable."
This set off an intense verbal feud between the two leaders.
However, the pontiff appeared to have enough by Saturday when he said it was "not in my interest at all" to debate the president about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel’s message of peace.
Truth be told, we all want peace, but while he reviews Gospel passages, he may want to check out Matthew 24:6-8, which states that wars are all a part of life on Earth.
"You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom," it says, and it's not just war.
"There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains," the passage adds.
And sometimes we have to endure the bad in order to achieve the good.
Leo may also want to thumb back to the Old Testament and check out Ecclesiastes, which says there’s a time for everything on Earth — both good and bad.
According to Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 8, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”
Verse 8 says there will be "A time for war and a time for peace."
Being American by birth, the pontiff may get a kick out of hearing this passage sung by the folk-rock group, the Byrds. The song is named "Turn! Turn! Turn!"
Pope Leo was only 10 years old when the Byrds came out with it, but he may still remember it.
Eric Lyman observed in a Just The News article over the weekend that today's spat between the Vatican and a world leader is nothing new.
He noted Napoleon's clash with Pope Pius VII more than 200 years ago, and the uneasy alliance that another Pope Pius — Pius XII — had with Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini during WWII.
Lyman also mentioned British King Henry VIII's 16th century break with Pope Clement VII, but there was one in particular that was also picked up by conservative commentator Scott Jennings:
That was the rift between Pope John Paul II and Eastern Europe's communist regimes. Polish by birth, this was personal to John Paul, and the pontiff had an equally strong ally in then-President Ronald Reagan.
Jennings told a CNN panel last week that this could be a real John Paul II - Ronald Reagan moment, who worked together to crush the Soviet Union.
"There's diplomacy going on right now, and there is a real chance because of what Trump has done and the situation we find ourselves in, for the world to bring pressure, economic pressure and diplomatic pressure, just like what was done in the '80s to bear against this terrorist regime, just the way it was brought to bear against the Soviets in the 1980s," Jennings said.
"And so I get the feeling sometimes the pope might be feeling a little adversarial, at least in some of his comments toward President Trump. But in this moment where you have, there’s no bombs falling right now. There's a blockade, there’s some restraint going on, and there’s talks going on."
Jennings concluded, "This, to me, is a moment where you could have a partnership for peace in a way that brings this terrorist regime that, by the way, has been at war with the West for nearly 50 years, to its knees."
Iran historically is an evil regime, even discounting its nuclear weapon ambitions and its state sponsorship of terrorism throughout the Mideast and beyond.
More than 36,500 Iranians were killed by Iran's security goons during the Jan. 8-9 crackdown on nationwide protests, making it the deadliest two-day protest massacre in history, according to documents reviewed by Iran International's Editorial Board.
But that would require President Trump and Pope Leo to call a truce and start working together to crush an unholy Islamic regime run by ruthless leaders.
If they can do it, they would both come out of it as heroes in the free world, and Leo would likely be hailed by people of all faiths — except Islam.
It could even make them co-recipients of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
But above all, it would give the pontiff an amazing legacy early into his papacy, one that would assure his place in history.
Michael Dorstewitz is a retired lawyer and is a frequent contributor to Newsmax. He's also a former U.S. Merchant Marine officer and a Second Amendment supporter. Read more Michael Dorstewitz Insider articles — Click Here Now.
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