At this point, the MAGA movement isn’t even pretending to separate politics from religion anymore.
In one of the more jaw-dropping moments from conservative media this week, Robert Jeffress, one of Donald Trump’s most loyal evangelical allies, went on Fox News and claimed Trump has a better understanding of the Bible than Pope Leo XIV.
Not metaphorically. Not politically. Literally.
Jeffress made the comments while defending Trump’s escalating feud with the pope after Pope Leo offered broad criticism of war and violence, comments Trump apparently took personally amid growing backlash over his military campaign against Iran.
Trump responded by attacking the pope as “weak on crime” and accused him of “catering to the radical left,” because apparently even the pope is now part of the liberal conspiracy according to MAGA logic.
Jeffress eagerly joined the pile-on during his Fox News appearance.
“The pope is a good man, he’s sincere in his faith, but he is sincerely wrong when it comes to Iran,”
Jeffress said before launching into a lecture about the proper role of government and religion.
“The pope ought to know, and I think he does know, God created both the church and government for two distinct purposes,”
“The role of the church is to point people to faith in Jesus Christ, but the role of government is to protect citizens from evil-doers.”
Then came the line that perfectly captures where parts of the modern evangelical movement have landed in the Trump era.
Jeffress proudly revealed he had been “in the Oval Office” with Trump shortly after the administration launched its U.S.-Israeli military operation against Iran — officially named Operation Epic Fury, and claimed the meeting convinced him Trump understands scripture better than the leader of the Catholic Church.
“The great irony is it looks like President Trump has a better understanding of what the Bible teaches about the role of government than the pope has!”
“And I’m glad the president hasn’t backed down at all.”
Think about how surreal this moment actually is.
A wealthy Texas megachurch pastor goes on national television to argue that Donald Trump — a man famously unfamiliar with basic Bible verses, who once struggled to name a favorite scripture and has repeatedly treated religion like a political prop — has a deeper grasp of Christianity than the pope.
And in MAGA world, that statement isn’t considered absurd. It’s applause material.
What’s really happening here is something much bigger than one bizarre TV interview. Trump’s movement has increasingly reshaped evangelical politics into a loyalty test where defending Trump matters more than theological consistency, moral authority, or even traditional religious hierarchy.
If the pope criticizes war? He’s “radical left.”
If Trump escalates conflict? Suddenly he’s the biblical scholar in the room.
The transformation has become so complete that many of Trump’s religious allies now openly frame him less as a politician and more as a kind of divinely guided strongman whose actions must always be defended — even against the leader of one of the world’s largest Christian faiths.
And somehow, they say all this with a straight face.
Watch the clip below:
Pastor Robert Jeffress: "It looks like President Trump has a better understanding of what the Bible teaches than the Pope" pic.twitter.com/TMSyTmdeTE
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 9, 2026
