Somehow, we’re living in a timeline where the contents of my medieval history classes are more relevant than those of my modern history classes, because the U.S. government feuding with the Catholic Church was not on my 2026 bingo card.
Catholicism and U.S. history have always had a complicated relationship. Early colonial history saw pockets of French and Spanish Catholics, both of whom had been predominantly Catholic throughout medieval history and following the Spanish Inquisition, respectively. However, the arrival of English Protestants outlawed Catholicism in many of the 13 colonies. This stemmed from the Reformation and theological disputes over the teachings of the Church, which divided Europe across religious lines.
While the anti-establishment clause of the First Amendment prevented the foundation of a state religion, and Baltimore became the first diocese in the U.S., anti-Catholicism still ran rampant across the country. This was seen predominantly at the turn of the 20th century with the arrival of Irish and Italian immigrants at Ellis Island.
To the Protestant population, these new Catholic immigrants were seen as “weird,” and growing fear and displeasure following the end of World War I led to the passage of anti-immigration laws, specifically targeting southern and eastern Europeans. The 18th amendment in 1919, which banned the production and sale of alcohol across the nation — or at least attempted to — was seen as curbing foreign influences, particularly those of German and Italian communities.
Despite having Catholic presidents such as John F. Kennedy and Joe Biden, Catholicism and U.S. history still remain, justifiably, at odds.
Chicago Meets the Vatican
While he was initially in the news as the justification for the sudden, inexplicable resurgence of Chicago sports teams, recently Pope Leo has been in the news for a different series of reasons: a feud with the president of the United States.
Following the ongoing attacks by the United States against Iran, on April 16, 2026, the pope said, “Woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic, and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”
He had previously commented on the conflict on April 8, after the president had threatened the death of the entire Iranian state, saying, “Today, as we all know, there was this threat against the entire people of Iran, and this is truly unacceptable. There are certainly issues here of international law, but even more than that, it is a moral question for the good of the (world’s) people.”
The pope offered additional criticism of the attacks on social media, leading the president to write on social media that the pope was “WEAK on Crime, and TERRIBLE for Foreign Policy.”
The Avignon Papacy
It was recently revealed, though, that back in January, during a meeting with representatives of the Vatican, the Pentagon had threatened the Church, quoting the medieval-era Avignon Papacy.
The Avignon papacy refers to the period of time when the pope, rather than being in Rome at the Vatican, lived in Avignon, France, after the French under Philip IV stormed the Vatican against Pope Boniface VIII.
For 67 years, the pope resided in Avignon, effectively a puppet state of the crown, before French conflict with Urban VI pushed French cardinals to elect a new French pope to reside in Avignon. This became known as the Western Schism — not to be confused with the Schism of 1054 — where Western Europe was governed by two popes (with the exception of the time when there were three popes) until 1417.
While the Pentagon maintains that it did not threaten violence against the Vatican, the feud between the president and Pope Leo has resulted in a split in the conservative Catholic faction, with critics and allies alike calling out the president for blasphemous actions and attempting to take on the Church.
Once again, we’re living in a timeline almost surreal both in and out of context. Apparently, the Catholic Church is once again divided — though this time it’s America against the world — and people are joking about signing up for a Crusade. So, next time someone says that being a medievalist is a waste of time, maybe just point them toward Twitter, because what do you mean people are getting “excommunicated” in the community notes?
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