<description>&lt;p&gt;This week, the President launched a series of social media attacks against Pope Leo XIV. He also offended Catholics and Christians worldwide with an &lt;a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/04/14/nx-s1-5783807/after-backlash-trump-deletes-post-depicting-him-as-jesus-like-figure" target="_blank"&gt;AI-generated photo&lt;/a&gt; portraying him as a Jesus-like figure.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;He also called the American-born pope "weak on crime" and "terrible for foreign policy."&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The pope responded by saying he will continue to advocate against war and promote peace.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Guest:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://religion.sdsu.edu/faculty-and-staff/bartel" target="_blank"&gt;Rebecca Bartel&lt;/a&gt;, associate professor, SDSU's Department for the Study of Religion&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;</description>

KPBS Midday Edition

KPBS

Religious studies professor weighs in on Trump vs. the Pope

APR 15, 202616 MIN
KPBS Midday Edition

Religious studies professor weighs in on Trump vs. the Pope

APR 15, 202616 MIN

Description

This week, the President launched a series of social media attacks against Pope Leo XIV. He also offended Catholics and Christians worldwide with an AI-generated photo portraying him as a Jesus-like figure.He also called the American-born pope "weak on crime" and "terrible for foreign policy."The pope responded by saying he will continue to advocate against war and promote peace.Guest:Rebecca Bartel, associate professor, SDSU's Department for the Study of Religion