Pope Leo XIV on Monday said he “will continue to speak out loudly against war,” hours after President Donald Trump launched an attack against him on social media, adding that he has “no fear of the Trump administration.”

The first U.S.-born pontiff in the history of the Catholic Church, who has been critical of Trump’s war in Iran, condemned the killings of innocent civilians around the world, adding that “someone has to stand up and say there’s a better way,” according to Reuters.

“The message of the church, my message, the message of the Gospel: Blessed are the Peacemakers. I do not look at my role as being political, a politician,” he said on a flight to Algiers. “I don’t want to get into a debate with him. I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing.”

“I will continue to speak out loudly against war, looking to promote peace, promoting dialogue and multilateral relationships among the states to look for just solutions to problems,” he added, according to Reuters.

Trump called the pope “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy” in a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday that came after the broadcast of a “60 Minutes” report that featured a joint interview with three American cardinals who discussed the pontiff’s emergence as an outspoken critic of the president and his policies, including the Iran conflict and his mass deportation campaign.

Leo had previously called Trump’s threats to erase Iranian civilization “truly unacceptable.”

Trump wrote late Sunday: “I don’t want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States because I’m doing exactly what I was elected, IN A LANDSLIDE, to do.”

“Leo should get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician,” he continued.

On Sunday night, the president also posted an AI-generated image of himself as a Christ-like figure healing a man and doubled down on his criticism of the pope in comments to reporters, calling him a “very liberal person.”

“I’m not a fan of Pope Leo,” he added.

But Pope Leo made clear he doesn’t mind defying the president.

“I have no fear of the Trump administration, or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do,” he said, according to The New York Times.

He also appeared to poke fun at the name of Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social.

“It’s ironic — the name of the site itself. Say no more,” the pontiff said, per the Times.

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