Trump Escalates War On Pope By Hurting Children of Migrants

Surely you’ve seen the back and forth between Trump and the Pope. It all started with the Pope speaking out against war. Never one to just leave something alone and let it just have its fifteen minutes of headlines, the U.S. President had to up the ante. But it surprised me, I don’t know why, that he was able to hit two of his favorite targets with one shot. He escalated his was on the Pope, not by actually going after Pope Leo XIV, but by cancelling a contract with a Catholic charity that helps children of migrants.

Why am I writing this?

Before we get into this, I have to say I really wish we had the scenario in the adjacent image. A Pope – any Pope; someone who knows what they’re doing with the health and welfare of children; and a group of migrant children happily playing on a sandy beach.

Instead, we have something very different. What actually have today is an image I choose not to include on my site. So, just imagine (1) a Pope – it could be any Pope because I don’t believe for a moment the current situation is personal. It’s about power, fear, and incredibly improper reactions on the part of the next person; (2) one particular president who I refuse to show here, but who you know; and (3) a group of migrant children in ICE cages waiting to be deported to who knows where.

As I said, I have no intention of putting up a visual of that. And yet, it’s all happening right now. In a country that claims to be exceptional. I think you know which one I mean.

The issue I want to address today though, is that Christians cannot just say, “it’s not my problem.” Whether we give money to the campaign, spend time on the campaign, support the people who are doing these things in any way, we all have to answer to Jesus for what we do and say.

While we might like to pretend ignorance is bliss, I don’t believe that’s going to be OK with Jesus – not here. Not someone who was so concerned with migrants and children. And so, I’m here to try to inform you – make sure ignorance isn’t an issue. If you choose to not believe me, ignore me, or just say, “so what” – and then continue on – that’s all OK. I can’t make you do anything. I’m not even trying to make you do anything. I’m just trying to give a point of view that maybe, if you are OK with what’s going on – just maybe I can help you see Jesus’ light, check this out, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you.

Trump feud with Pope Leo results in cancellation of funds to Catholic charity to help migrant children

The headline says it all: “Trump yanks millions from Catholic Charities amid Pope feud“.

✏️ The Trump administration has abruptly canceled a multimillion-dollar contract with a Catholic charity that houses and cares for migrant children amid the president’s feud with Pope Leo XIV.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami has helped provide vital services to unaccompanied minors for more than 60 years, but could now shut down within a matter of months after the administration canceled an $11 million federal contract.

The Daily Beast

There was also a response from the archdiocese on what happened:

✏️ Writing for the Miami Herald, Thomas Wenski, archbishop of Miami, said it is “baffling” that the government would want to shut down a service that has helped thousands of children who entered the U.S. without parents or guardians since the 1960s.

“The Archdiocese of Miami’s services for unaccompanied minors have been recognized for their excellence and have served as a model for other agencies throughout the country,” Wenski wrote.

“Our track record in serving this vulnerable population is unmatched. Yet, the Archdiocese of Miami’s Catholic Charities’ services for unaccompanied minors has been stripped of funding and will be forced to shut down within three months.”

Thomas Wenski, archbishop of Miami – as reported in The Daily Beast

The archbishop wrote, “it is “baffling” that the government would want to shut down a service that has helped thousands of children who entered the U.S. without parents or guardians since the 1960s“.

Trump’s hat trick against Pope Leo XIV

Honestly, it’s not at all baffling. In hockey lingo, it’s a hat trick.

1. An attack on the Pope, by way of a Catholic charity.
2. An attack on the poor, especially someone who won’t/can’t vote for him.
3. An attack on migrants, even if they are children.

If you think about it, all three of those items have one thing in common. One simple word. Vengeance.

Vengeance

The President is famous for his need to take vengeance. OK – people do that.

But this is a President who claims to be Christian. Just this morning, I heard him say, on BBC News as he was taking questions while on his way to the helicopter outside of the White House – “I’m as much into the Gospel as anyone”. OK, people say that too.

But then, does saying either one actually mean anything?

Doesn’t the Bible say: “vengeance is mine, says the Lord”?

To understand why all of this matters spiritually, we need to look at what Scripture actually says.

Doesn’t the Bible say something like “Vengeance is mine, says The Lord”? Or for the old school King James readers, “Vengeance is mine, sayeth the Lord”? I remember the KJV myself, so surely someone who’s as great a Christian as Trump claims to be not only remembers, but really understands it. Right?

To be sure, such a verse does exist, in both Jewish and Christian scripture. In fact, the Christian verse is a reminder of the Jewish Law. Not surprising, since it was written by Paul – one-time Jewish Pharisee.

Indeed, the Bible does say that. So, how did we end up with not only a President, but a whole group of leaders in this country that don’t know this?

The truth is, I don’t know what’s in their hearts. Only God knows that.

However, I can say that it’s a huge misinterpretation of the Bible to claim that God thinks or says that we should seek vengeance on our own. It’s just wrong.

One common source of this misunderstanding is this verse from 2 Thessalonians. It’s written by Paul, the same Paul who wrote the Romans verse above. One difference is that the verse below is from the ESV translation.

Maybe you noticed, while that is a verse, it’s not a sentence. It’s a phrase from the middle of a sentence.

How would you like to have someone take a phrase from the middle of a sentence you said, especially one that portrays the exact opposite of what you said in the entire sentence? I’m quite sure you wouldn’t like it at all.

How does this kind of issue show up in the Bible?

So, the obvious next question is: how can this happen? Why isn’t the Bible the same, regardless of the translation? Followed by, isn’t the Bible God’s word? How can it come out so differently?

Well, there is an answer. It’s very logical. And it’s very common. Something we see all the time, even today.

Having said that, laying it all out does take more time to read than this article does.

I hope you all want to check out exactly how and why this happens and learn that it’s not anything nefarious. It’s actually what I’d call a “feature” and not a problem. There is a perfectly simple and reasonable explanation.

The bottom line, for those that don’t want to take the time to check out the full explanation, let me just tell you that this is just one example of why we shouldn’t pull one verse out of the Bible and think we know what it means.

In this case, the passage from which this verse is taken, including the entire sentence/thought, is:

And there it is. God is the one extacting vengeance. Paying back, so to speak. God gives us relief from those who afflict us. In His own manner and time.

Again, I urge you to check out the article on my other site at:

What Does the Bible Say About Vengeance?

… to learn more about this. It is not uncommon, and knowing about why it happens and how it’s misused, accidentally or otherwise, it will help you know how to determine the truth for yourself about what God actually said about Himself.