Trump’s antipathy for Pope may have roots in childhood Protestant church

Key Points:

• Donald Trump’s recent attacks on Pope Leo and his social media portrayal as Jesus Christ are contextualized by his youth attendance at the Protestant Marble Collegiate Church, led by Norman Vincent Peale, an anti-Catholic pastor.
• Peale, who officiated at Trump’s first wedding, was a prominent figure opposing John F. Kennedy’s 1960 presidential candidacy due to Kennedy’s Catholic faith, fearing it threatened the separation of church and state.
• In 1960, Peale led a group of Protestant clergy issuing a manifesto against a Catholic president, emphasizing concerns that the Catholic Church hierarchy could undermine American religious pluralism and political independence.
• Kennedy responded by affirming his commitment to strict church-state separation, rejecting fears that a Catholic president would be controlled by the pope.
• The anti-Catholic sentiment expressed by Peale’s group echoes earlier prejudices, including Ku Klux Klan opposition to Catholic candidates and ethnic Catholic police forces, illustrating longstanding religious tensions in American politics.