The U.S. government is aggressively pushing back on reports of a falling out with the Holy See, calling claims of a January dust-up at the Department of War “grossly false.”
A report from the Free Press on Wednesday claimed Undersecretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby lectured and threatened Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, in late January at the Pentagon.
The report, citing “both Vatican and U.S. officials briefed on the meeting,” alluded only vaguely to a “bitter lecture warning that the United States has the military power to do whatever it wants—and that the Church had better take its side.”
Similarly, the piece claimed someone on the U.S. end “invoked” the Avignon Papacy — the period in the 13th century when the pope was captured and held in France — without clarifying what the official supposedly said.
The Free Press piece ultimately attributed this encounter to a behind-the-scenes breakdown of relations between the White House and Holy See, claiming Pope Leo XIV backed out of a possible visit to the U.S. in response.
After the story took on a life of its own on social media, the War Department released a statement on Thursday through its Rapid Response X account “in light of grossly false and distorted recent reporting” about the meeting, asserting that coverage of the January sit-down has been “highly exaggerated and distorted.”
“The meeting between Pentagon and Vatican officials was a respectful and reasonable discussion,” the War Department said. “We have nothing but the highest regard and welcome continued dialogue with the Holy See.”
The U.S. Embassy to the Holy See then followed up with its own response, reporting that Amb. Brian Burch met with Pierre to discuss the media spectacle.
Burch and the U.S. Embassy directly quoted Pierre as calling the reports of any animosity at the meeting “fabrications” and that the discussions were “frank, but very cordial.”
They further quoted the cardinal as telling them that the Free Press story “does not reflect what happened” and was “just invented to make a story.”
Burch scolded “journalists and online agitators” for attempting to “exploit a routine meeting to sow division between the Holy See and the United States.”
POPE LEO CALLS ON THOSE WHO ‘UNLEASH WARS’ TO ‘CHOOSE PEACE’ IN FIRST EASTER MASS
Pierre does not maintain a social media presence and has not issued his own public statement.
The Washington Examiner has reached out to the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington to confirm the quotes attributed to Pierre by the U.S. Embassy.
Though tensions might not be as high as media reports suggested, not all is peachy between Rome and Washington.
Pope Leo came out strongly and directly against Trump’s threat to wipe out Iranian civilization this week, calling his bellicose rhetoric “truly unacceptable.”