In an exclusive Zeteo Town Hall with Mehdi, Fr. James Martin, a senior Jesuit priest and editor-at-large of America Magazine, explains why the Trump administration’s attacks against the Pope aren’t just wrong – they’re “shockingly un-Christian.” On Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s March prayer for violence against those “who deserve no mercy,” Martin tells Mehdi: “It’s a complete perversion of the gospel.” He adds, “To say that people don’t deserve mercy is about as un-Christian as you could get.” Martin also believes that the Trump administration and the Republican Party’s brand of Christian nationalism is being weaponized to create an “us versus them” narrative to justify violence and determine “who’s American” and who’s not. It represents “the opposite of Jesus’s message,” he says. Paid subscribers got to ask Fr. Martin their own questions, including whether Catholic voters are turning against Trump and the limitations of military force under the Catholic “just war” doctrine *This live Q&A was published a week ago on zeteo.com. If you like early access to exclusive content like this then head over to Zeteo’s Substack and become a paid subscriber today. Your support goes a long way in fueling our mission for bringing fearless, independent journalism to YOU.
