On February 3, 2026, House Speaker Mike Johnson posted a 1,600-word essay titled “The Christian Case for Deportation” responding to Pope Leo XIV‘s citation of Matthew 25:35 in criticizing immigration enforcement. Johnson argued that biblical commands to care for sojourners apply to individuals rather than governments, citing Romans 13 to frame border security as a divinely ordained civil duty. The Pope had condemned the Trump administration’s crackdown as dehumanizing and launched an aid initiative for immigrants. The exchange represents the latest theological dispute between Republican leadership and Catholic authorities over immigration policy and scriptural interpretation.
House Speaker Mike Johnson directly challenged Pope Leo XIV‘s scriptural interpretation of immigration policy during a Capitol Hill press conference on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, escalating a public disagreement between Republican leadership and the Catholic Church over biblical teachings on borders and deportation.
Johnson confronts Pope Leo XIV over biblical immigration interpretation, sparking clash between GOP leadership and Catholic Church on deportation policy.
Johnson responded to a reporter’s question about the Pope citing Matthew 25:35 to critique the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda. The Speaker promised to provide a detailed response and later that day posted a 1,600-word essay titled “The Christian Case for Deportation” on X, accompanied by a photo of the Texas-Mexico border wall.
In his essay, Johnson argued that “sovereign borders are biblical and good and right,” emphasizing the distinction between individual and governmental responsibilities. He explained that while individuals should love their neighbors, civil authorities must maintain law and order. “We should love our neighbors ourselves as individuals, but as a civil authority, the government has to maintain the law. And that is biblical, and it’s right, and it’s just,” Johnson wrote.
The Speaker’s theological argument rested on what he described as four biblically ordained spheres of authority: individual, family, church, and civil government, each with distinct responsibilities. He asserted that biblical commands to care for sojourners apply to individuals rather than governments, and that citations supporting open borders have been taken out of context by the political left. Johnson cited Romans 13 to characterize civil authorities as God’s agents to maintain order and punish wrongdoers.
Pope Leo XIV had issued a rare statement condemning the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and what he characterized as dehumanizing rhetoric. The pontiff launched an aid initiative for immigrants living in America and urged deep reflection on migrant treatment in the United States, arguing against indiscriminate mass deportation. The Pope described the Trump administration’s treatment of immigrants as “extremely disrespectful, to say the least.”
This exchange represents the latest in an ongoing feud between Republicans and Catholic leaders over biblical immigration teachings. Johnson has previously faced criticism from scholars for misinterpreting religious texts for political purposes. He previously taught church seminars claiming America as a “Christian nation” and characterized Biden-Harris immigration policy as opposing biblical teaching, asserting that immigration requires assimilation and respect for law.
Scholars note that the Bible also frames marriage as a divine covenant between husband and wife, which underscores distinct roles and responsibilities within family and civil spheres, a theme echoed in discussions of authority and obligation in public life marriage as covenant.
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