U.S. Ambassador clarifies view on pope’s role in politics, war after Vatican response

After the Vatican reframed statements that U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch made to The New York Times, the ambassador has clarified that he understands Pope Leo XIV’s role as a head of state is “inseparable” from his role as the universal shepherd of the Church.

During a July 23 interview with the EWTN News program “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo,” Burch clarified that his July 9 comments to the Times were not meant to imply that Leo’s statements about Iran war policy should be seen as simply diplomatic — rather than spiritual — guidance.

“I think thereʼs a misunderstanding,” Burch explained. “… [The role of] the pope as the universal sovereign of the Holy See and as the universal pastor — a pastor of the universal Church — is inseparable.”

The controversy stemmed from a quotation in the Times article in which Burch said: “When the pope acts as the sovereign leader of the Holy See, he is coequal with world leaders.” The article also paraphrased Burch’s position by saying the ambassador argued that the pope’s comments about the Iran war were not made as the vicar of Christ but rather as the political leader of the Vatican City State.

Without naming Burch, the Editorial Director for the Vatican Dicastery for Communication, Andrea Tornielli, subsequently wrote a July 13 op-ed saying that “even when he speaks about war and peace … the Successor of Peter remains, above all, a spiritual leader.” Even though Leo is a head of state, he wrote, this “does not mean that he acts or speaks as a politician when addressing issues concerning the affairs of humanity.”

In his interview with Arroyo, Burch disputed the Times’ characterization of his views, saying the outlet “doesnʼt exactly understand the nuances of Catholic social teaching and how to apply it.”

“The pope has this dual role,” Burch said. “He is both the head of the sovereign territory of the Holy See, which has diplomatic relations with the world, but inseparable from that is his role as the universal pastor of the Catholic Church. And when he acts, he certainly acts in such a way to call the world to these high moral principles, to the ideals of … how [humanity] ought to live together.”

At the same time, Burch insisted that “there are some very difficult, contingent, practical matters” that play into decisions about going to war, which he said “is the responsibility of the prudential wisdom of those responsible for the common good,” which are political leaders like President Trump.

“I tried to explain [to the Times] where there are certain prudential questions,” Burch said. “For example, what does the intelligence information tell us about the situation in Iran? Where is the dialogue at? What [do] the regional alliances look like? What [does] the war game scenario implicate?”

“These are very contingent, prudential questions that inform this question on the legitimate use of force,” he added. “And I think, to the Holy Fatherʼs credit, he is the universal shepherd that is calling humanity to this high ideal to try to resolve these sorts of conflicts without violence, without the use of force.”

Burch told Arroyo that he does not see disagreement between Trump and Leo on the intended end goal: “Thereʼs no disagreement on peace, on disarming Iran, on the need for interreligious dialogue, for religious freedom.”

“Where the challenge comes is the means to get there,” Burch said. He added that it’s not “a surprise, nor a shock, nor an unwelcome message from the Holy Father that we ought to seek peace, that we ought to seek ways to resolve these sorts of conflicts without the use of force.”

“But as you know, original sin exists, and there are evil people in this world with evil intentions that, if they arenʼt stopped, certainly could do enormous damage, catastrophic damage, in the world,” the ambassador emphasized.