The cited article from the EWTN News / National Catholic Register portal (June 18, 2026) reports on a Pew Research Center survey claiming that 78% of “Catholics” in the United States view the usurper “Pope” Leo XIV favorably, and that a majority (51%) believe President Donald Trump has been “too critical” of this “pontiff.” The survey, conducted between May 26 and June 1, 2026, reveals a sharp political divide: 70% of “Democratic-leaning Catholics” find Trump’s criticism excessive, while 39% of “Republican-leaning Catholics” believe Leo XIV himself has been “too critical” of Trump. The article quotes John White, a “politics professor” at “The Catholic University of America,” who praises Leo XIV as a “moral leader” whose pronouncements are “true to the Gospel.” The article frames the conflict as a matter of “foreign policy” rhetoric regarding the Iran war, noting Trump’s description of Leo XIV as “terrible on foreign policy.” This entire narrative is a diabolical substitution of political allegiance and naturalistic “moral leadership” for the supernatural deposit of Faith, exposing the complete apostasy of the conciliar sect and its members who have made an idol of personality and politics.
The Complete Bankruptcy of Conciliar “Catholicism”: A Pew Survey on Political Idolatry
The Survey as a Mirror of Apostate Conciliar Catholicism
The cited article from the EWTN News / National Catholic Register portal (June 18, 2026) reports on a Pew Research Center survey of 1,848 individuals who identify as “Catholics” in the United States. The survey claims that 78% view “Pope” Leo XIV favorably, with 51% stating that President Donald Trump has been “too critical” of this “pontiff.” The article frames the conflict as a matter of “foreign policy” rhetoric regarding the Iran war, noting Trump’s description of Leo XIV as “terrible on foreign policy.” John White, a “politics professor” at “The Catholic University of America,” is quoted praising Leo XIV as a “moral leader” whose pronouncements are “true to the Gospel.”
This entire narrative is a diabolical substitution of political allegiance and naturalistic “moral leadership” for the supernatural deposit of Faith. It reveals the complete spiritual bankruptcy of the conciliar sect and its members who have made an idol of personality and politics, demonstrating that the “Catholics” in the pews of the post-conciliar structures are no longer members of the Mystical Body of Christ but rather a political action committee with a religious veneer.
Political Idolatry and the Rejection of Christ the King
The survey results expose the fundamental heresy of the conciliar revolution: the substitution of the Social Kingship of Christ with the reign of political liberalism and partisan allegiance. The very concept of evaluating a “pope” based on his “approach to the Trump administration” or his “foreign policy” is a blasphemous degradation of the Papacy. The true Church teaches that Christ is King of all nations, and His law—not the platform of any political party—is the rule of human society.
Pius XI in the encyclical *Quas Primas* (1925) established the Feast of Christ the King precisely to combat the secularism that removes Christ from public life. He wrote: “When God and Jesus Christ – as we lamented – were removed from laws and states and when authority was derived not from God but from men, the foundations of that authority were destroyed, because the main reason why some have the right to command and others have the duty to obey was removed.” The Pew survey demonstrates that the “Catholics” of the conciliar sect have fully embraced this secularist heresy. They do not view the “pope” as the Vicar of Christ entrusted with teaching the immutable truths of Faith, but as a “moral leader” whose pronouncements are evaluated based on their alignment with partisan political preferences.
The fact that 70% of “Democratic-leaning Catholics” find Trump’s criticism of Leo XIV “too critical,” while 39% of “Republican-leaning Catholics” believe Leo XIV has been “too critical” of Trump, reveals that these individuals have placed their political party above the authority of the “pope” they claim to follow. This is the very essence of the heresy of indifferentism condemned by Pius IX in the *Syllabus of Errors*: “Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true” (Proposition 15), and “Man may, in the observance of any religion whatever, find the way of eternal salvation” (Proposition 16). The “Catholics” of the conciliar sect have reduced religion to a matter of personal political preference, where the “pope” is only valuable insofar as he validates their partisan worldview.
The Diabolical Naturalism of “Moral Leadership”
The quote from John White, a “politics professor” at “The Catholic University of America,” is a perfect specimen of modernist naturalism. He states: “Pope Leo XIV has bridged the divisions among Catholics with his wise, timely pronouncements — all of which are true to the Gospel… He is a moral leader for this time.”
This statement is a complete inversion of Catholic truth. The “pope” of the conciliar sect is not a “moral leader”—he is, in the eyes of the apostate world and its inhabitants, a political actor whose “pronouncements” are evaluated for their “timeliness” and their ability to “bridge divisions.” The Gospel is not a set of “wise, timely pronouncements” designed to bridge political divisions; it is the eternal, unchanging truth of God, delivered once and for all to the Apostles, which divides the saved from the damned.
St. Pius X in *Lamentabili Sane Exitu* (1907) condemned the modernist proposition that “The dogmas of faith should be understood according to their practical function, i.e., as binding in action, rather than as principles of belief” (Proposition 26). The Pew survey and the commentary of John White reduce the “pope” to a purely naturalistic “moral leader” whose value lies in his political utility, not in his supernatural authority to teach the Faith. This is the very essence of the modernist heresy: the reduction of religion to a matter of practical morality and social cohesion, stripped of all supernatural content.
The Conciliar “Pope” as a Political Actor
The article’s framing of the conflict between Trump and Leo XIV as a matter of “foreign policy” regarding the Iran war further exposes the conciliar sect’s complete abandonment of its supernatural mission. The “pope” is not evaluated on his fidelity to the teachings of the Church, his defense of the true Faith, or his condemnation of heresy. He is evaluated on his “foreign policy” positions regarding geopolitical conflicts.
This is the inevitable fruit of the conciliar revolution’s embrace of religious liberty and false ecumenism. The “Catholic University of America” professor can praise Leo XIV for “bridging divisions” because the entire conciliar structure is built on the principle that the Church must adapt to the modern world, not convert it. Pius IX in the *Syllabus of Errors* condemned the proposition that “The Roman Pontiff can, and ought to, reconcile himself, and come to terms with progress, liberalism and modern civilization” (Proposition 80). Yet this is precisely what the conciliar “pope” and his followers have done. They have made the Church a player in the political game of the naturalistic world, subject to the same partisan divisions and the same secularist criteria of evaluation.
The fact that 31% of respondents were “unsure or did not answer” regarding Trump’s criticism of Leo XIV, and 30% were “unsure or did not answer” regarding Leo XIV’s criticism of Trump, reveals the profound spiritual confusion of the conciliar sect’s membership. These are individuals who have been so thoroughly formed by the naturalistic, modernist conciliar religion that they cannot even discern the spiritual significance of a political figure’s attack on their “pope.” They have lost the sense of the supernatural entirely.
The Pew Survey as a Symptom of Systemic Apostasy
The survey’s finding that Leo XIV’s favorability is highest among those who attend “Mass” weekly (85%) and lowest among those who seldom attend (73%) is a damning indictment of the conciliar sect’s pseudo-liturgy. Those who frequently attend the modernist “Mass”—which is a naturalistic table of assembly that obscures the propitiatory sacrifice of Calvary—are the most attached to the conciliar “pope.” This is because the entire conciliar religion is a naturalistic system designed to accommodate the modern man’s attachment to the world, while providing a veneer of “Catholic” identity.
The 84% favorability among “Democratic-leaning Catholics” versus the 72% among “Republican-leaning Catholics” further demonstrates that the conciliar “pope” is a political figure whose appeal is determined by partisan allegiance. The 22% unfavorable view among Republicans, compared to the 5% among Democrats, shows that the conciliar sect is not a supernatural society united in the Faith, but a political coalition divided along the same lines as the secular world.
This is the fruit of the conciliar revolution’s embrace of the heresy of democratization. The Church is not a democracy where the “pope” is evaluated by popular opinion. She is a hierarchical society founded by Christ, governed by the authority of God. The Pew survey treats the “pope” as a politician subject to approval ratings, and the “Catholics” of the conciliar sect accept this framework without question. They have lost all sense of the supernatural character of the Church and the divine origin of papal authority.
The Abomination of Desolation and the Loss of the Supernatural Sense
The entire article is a testament to the complete loss of the supernatural sense among the “Catholics” of the conciliar sect. There is no mention of the true Pope, the vacancy of the Apostolic See, the invalidity of the conciliar “pope’s” authority, or the necessity of the supernatural virtue of faith for salvation. The article treats the “pope” as a purely naturalistic figure—a “moral leader” whose “pronouncements” are evaluated for their political utility.
This is the “abomination of desolation” spoken of by Our Lord (Matthew 24:15): the profanation of the holy place by the removal of the supernatural and its replacement with the purely natural. The conciliar sect has emptied the Church of its supernatural content and filled it with the spirit of the world. The Pew survey is merely a statistical confirmation of what has been evident for decades: the “Catholics” of the conciliar sect are not members of the true Church of Christ, but of a naturalistic, modernist counterfeit that has taken possession of the physical structures of the Church.
The call of the true Catholic Faith is clear: “Come out of her, my people, that you may not share in her sins” (Revelation 18:4). The “Catholics” of the conciliar sect, as revealed by this Pew survey, have made themselves partakers of the sins of the conciliar revolution by submitting to the authority of the usurper “pope,” participating in the naturalistic “Mass,” and reducing the supernatural religion of Christ to a matter of political allegiance and “moral leadership.” They must repent, reject the conciliar sect, and return to the integral Catholic Faith of all ages, which teaches that Christ is King, that His Church is a supernatural society, and that the “pope” is not a “moral leader” for this time, but the Vicar of Christ, the guardian of the immutable deposit of Faith, and the shepherd of souls unto eternal life.
Source:
Pew Survey: Majority of Catholics Say Trump Is Too critical of Pope Leo XIV (ncregister.com)
Date: 19.06.2026