Pope Leo XIV recently spoke during his visit to Algeria and called for Catholics to be a little less fearful of Islam, urging dialogue and respect instead of concern about mass immigration from Muslim countries. He pointed to Lebanon as a place where Christians and Muslims live as friends.
Pope Leo: “We should perhaps be a little less fearful of Islam.” https://t.co/OuhrkLm4Sr pic.twitter.com/8pEMCGZfqU
— Sign of the Cross (@CatholicSOTC) April 14, 2026
The pope spent time talking about persecuted groups around the world, yet he didn’t mention the tens of thousands of protesters killed over the past 50 years in Iran. That regime has crushed dissent with force, imprisoned critics, and executed opponents. Families bury loved ones while the government continues to tighten control, a reality that never made it into his remarks.
Families have left under pressure, harassment, and economic strain tied to life under Palestinian Authority control. Walls in the city now carry graffiti that mocks Jews and Christians while praising Hamas, changes that have unfolded in the place where Christianity began.
In Bethlehem, Christians frequently face violence and intimidation. Muslim clans use force to resolve disputes, leaving Christian families defenseless.7 In 2022, a Muslim man was accused of harassing young Christian women at the Forefathers Orthodox Church in Beit Sahour near Bethlehem. Soon after, the church was attacked by a mob of Palestinian men who hurled rocks at the building while congregants cowered inside, with several injured in the attack. In April 2022 Palestinian evangelical pastor Johnny Shahwan was arrested by the PA on charges of “promoting normalization” with Israel. PA security forces did nothing to counter this. In October 2022 an unidentified gunman shot at the Christian-owned Bethlehem Hotel after a video on social media associated the hotel with a display that included cardboard cutouts of a Star of David and a Menorah. No arrests were made in connection with the shooting.
Added to this is the institutional persecution committed by PA police against Christians. As one member of the Protestant clergy under the PA explained: “Christians feel unprotected due to the failure of the PA police to intervene on their behalf in confrontations with Muslims.” When subjected to harassment and worse by Muslim extremists, Palestinian Christians usually opt not to report incidents to the PA police. According to Shafik, a Protestant clergyman, many are too scared to discuss their accounts, feeling it is dangerous since it may provoke further persecution, regarding the PA police as hostile. Sana Razi Nashash from Beit Jala recalls being harassed by a man in the street. The next day, on her way to file a complaint with the police, she saw the perpetrator wearing a PA police uniform. Needless to say, she did not bother filing the complaint.
Pope Leo expressed sorrow over the death of Maronite priest Father Pierre al-Rahi in Lebanon, describing him as a faithful pastor who rushed to help others during a strike. The pope condemned violence that took innocent lives, a concern that didn’t extend the same way when Hezbollah damaged an ancient Byzantine church or used civilian areas as cover.
Like nearly every other country or organization, it reflects a pattern showing selective attention, leaving key events unaddressed.
It’s hard for me to wrap my mind around a leader of a church telling us to be less afraid of a religion that calls for struggle against non-believers and for dominance over other faiths.
On top of that, regions that once held large Christian populations now hold small remnants of those communities. Pope Leo knows that history, yet still chose to downplay concern and encourage Catholics to set it aside.
Let’s compare and contrast.
President Donald Trump takes a different approach, confronting threats tied to radical Islam and pushing policies that aim to protect American interests. He doesn’t ignore risk or soften language when security is at stake.
There’s a great deal of daylight between how these two heads of state approach the same issue.
Bethlehem shows the cost of silence; Christians leave because they no longer feel secure, where symbols of faith face ridicule in public spaces. Armed groups operate with impunity while the Christian presence continues to shrink. Pope Leo speaks about dialogue but avoids direct statements about those conditions.
Those of us Catholics who follow global events see the gap where the church once spoke clearly about threats to its people, defended believers, and, without hesitation, called out persecution. That voice now sounds softer during a time when many expect clarity.
The pope chose his message, urging calm while asking Catholics to lower their temperature in the room. Unfortunately, the world he addresses includes shrinking Christian communities, violent repression, and open hostility toward the faith in several regions; ignoring those facts doesn’t change them.
Catholics deserve leadership that speaks with precision and courage. We deserve a voice that recognizes what’s happening to fellow Catholics and addresses it without hesitation. The decline in Bethlehem and the silence on Iran show what happens when that voice fades.
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