Rejuvenation in the Vatican: Pope Leo XIV looks back on a remarkable first year in office.Image: keystone
His spectacular clash with US President Donald Trump showed just one facet of Leo XIV. An overview.
May 8, 2026, 4:21 p.mMay 8, 2026, 4:21 p.m
Dominik Straub, Rome / ch media
The break with Donald Trump as a turning point
The dispute with the US President has changed everything in the public perception of the Pope – in Rome, the current pontificate of the first Pope from the USA is already divided into two phases: the one before April 7th and the one after. On that memorable Tuesday before Easter, Leo
He also made no secret of what he thinks about a possible attack on Iranian power plants or oil facilities. “Attacks on civilian infrastructure violate international law,” emphasized the Pope. From his point of view, they are “also a sign of the cursed, of the division, of the destruction that humans are capable of.”
The Pope versus Trump dominated the headlines for days.Image: keystone
The pontiff’s words resonated like thunder across the globe, especially in his homeland, the USA. The US President reacted to the papal warnings the way he always reacts to criticism: with insults. Donald Trump called the Pope “weak” and “terrible”; Leo XIV was wrong and had no idea what was going on in Iran. Furthermore, without him, Trump, he would never have become pope. Leo XIV did not allow himself to be intimidated: He was not afraid of the US government and would continue to preach the gospel.
Since then, Leo However, the Pope himself probably only smiles mildly at such attributions. “As a shepherd of the church, I cannot be for war,” said 70-year-old Robert Francis Prevost on the flight back from his eleven-day trip to Africa. Or to put it another way: It is self-evident that a pope calls for peace.
Appeals for peace have always been part of the papal office – those of John Paul II were particularly urgent in 2003, when George W. Bush called for a war in Iraq. Since the Vatican itself stopped waging wars – and that was over 150 years ago – working for peace and for the suffering civilian population has been part of the popes’ job profile. And Leo XIV suffers with him: he is carrying a photo of a Muslim child with him, he said on the plane. The boy met him in Lebanon with a sign saying “Welcome Pope Leo” – he has since been killed in the war.
A pope as an alternative
The Pope did not seek conflict with the US President. But it was almost unavoidable that sooner or later there would be a clash between the educated, sensitive Pope, who was born in rich Chicago and lived as a missionary and bishop in a poor Peruvian province for over twenty years, and the aggressive, narcissistic power man Trump. The loud-mouthed and vulgar freak show in the White House is for Leo XIV what it is for many people: repulsive.
The newly elected pope shows himself to the waiting believers on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica on May 8, 2025.Image: keystone
Robert Francis Prevost is the living alternative to Trump – in origin, demeanor and worldview. Only in this way was it possible for the humble and gentle Pope to become really loud and clear on April 7th. Precisely because Leo XIV usually acts reserved and quiet, his appearance had even greater impact.
Reconciliation as a leitmotif in the Vatican
Apart from the spectacular conflict with Trump, things have become significantly quieter in the Vatican since the election of Robert Francis Prevost on May 8, 2025 than during the times of his busy predecessor. In terms of temperament and style, Leo He listens, weighs things up and looks for solutions that everyone can live with.
On his trip to Africa in April – here in Angola – Pope Leo was enthusiastically celebrated by millions of Catholics.Image: keystone
In particular, Leo He wants to be what “Pontifex Maximus” originally means: supreme bridge builder. The mathematically trained Pope also takes a pragmatic and tactical approach. Last October, he allowed one of Francis’ fiercest opponents, the ultra-conservative US Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, to read a Tridentine mass in Latin in St. Peter’s Basilica – a rite that Francis had restricted.
With this conciliatory gesture, Leo The political harvest followed the scandal with Trump: the entire US episcopate stood behind the Pope, even the conservative “MAGA” bishops – a unity that would have been hardly conceivable under the polarizing Francis.
At the same time, this gesture does not mean a departure from the course of its predecessor. In key issues – the protection of migrants, the commitment to the poor and social justice, as well as the synodal process initiated by Francis – Leo XIV continues on the path he has chosen, albeit with different accents. Cardinal Matteo Zuppi put it this way a few months after the election: Continuity was the focus of the conclave. Leo
Internal pragmatism
The current pontificate has a clear guiding star: the unity of the church. If Leo This was exemplified in the dealings with the German bishops, who want to allow a formal blessing for homosexual couples. “The Holy See has made it clear that we do not agree,” said the Pope – but at the same time added that a church split should not be risked because of “sexual issues”. There are more important issues: justice, equality, freedom and religious freedom.
Pope Leo speaks during the swearing-in ceremony of the new Swiss Guards last Wednesday.Image: keystone
In other words: Leo XIV avoids escalation. He will not send a visitor to Germany, but he will also not abandon those believers who stick to traditional teaching. He is likely to maintain this balance on other conflict issues – such as celibacy or female ordination: leeway in individual cases, but no radical steps that could provoke a schism.
Francis also ultimately remained cautious on doctrinal issues. Nevertheless, his pontificate was perceived by many as a permanent state of emergency. Under Leo XIV, the Vatican gradually returned to normality.
A new lifestyle
The new normal also includes the fact that Leo XIV – unlike Francis, who lived in the Santa Marta guesthouse – has moved back into the apostolic palace. He drives more representative, albeit electrically powered, cars.
Personally, Leo XIV also sets different accents. His workload remains enormous, but he consciously takes time to relax. Almost every week he retreats to Castelgandolfo to be in the fresh air, play tennis and read. Italian media also report on a fitness room in the apostolic palace. It’s not really a work-life balance – but it’s a much more careful approach to your own health than its predecessor.
One could say: With the comparatively young Leo