In just a week, Donald Trump has gone from sharing the almost blasphemous image of himself as a pope to posting the uncharacteristically subdued message congratulating Chicago-born cardinal Robert Prevost on his election to the head of the Catholic Church.
Vice-President JD Vance has also been on his best behaviour, posting a message of congratulations, saying: “I’m sure millions of American Catholics and other Christians will pray for his successful work leading the church.”
Trump is all about “America First” and his supporters are self-described patriots. And the election of Pope Leo XIV has put one of their fellow citizens at the top of one of the world’s oldest institutions for the first time.
But in these deeply fractious ideological times, it is not so simple to suggest all the America First faithful would be happy with this result.
“The selection of a pope born in the United States surprised almost everyone,” professor of religion at Dartmouth College Randall Balmer told the ABC.
Leo was born in the United States, but he has had long stints working in Peru and, like Pope Francis, represents the global church.
And when it comes to some of the most divisive issues in American society, in his recent history, Leo has positioned himself on the same side as Francis — someone the traditionalist Catholics within the MAGA movement “hated”.
US Catholics celebrate as the first North American pontiff, Pope Leo XIV, emerges on the balcony.
In his speech on the balcony over St Peter’s Square, Leo thanked Francis and talked about building bridges: “Help each other to build bridges — with dialogue, with encounter, uniting all of us to be one people always in peace.”
In his address he signalled he would keep the Catholic Church on the path his close friend Francis was paving, one taking the church to as many people as possible.
“Allow me to continue that same blessing,”
Leo said.
Conservative Catholics in the US wanted a pope who would have a focus on theological doctrine.
MAGA heavyweight Steve Bannon talked about his issue with “globalist” pontiffs who want to broaden the church.
In Leo, traditionalist Catholics in the US are likely to be “bitterly disappointed”.
“Leo XIV seems to list toward the progressive side,” Dr Balmer said.
“The early thinking is that he’s likely to chart roughly the same course that Francis did, that is to say working slowly and cautiously toward a broader and more inclusive church.”
Like Francis, the man who is now Leo has a history of correcting the vice-president on his attempts to use Catholic teachings to justify the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policy.
Like Francis, Robert Prevost has promoted pastoral care, especially when it came to the plight of migrants.
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