Pope Leo warns of waning democracy after Trump criticism

Pope Leo warns of waning democracy after Trump criticism
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Pope Leo voiced concern over the risk of democracies sliding into “majoritarian tyranny” on Tuesday, in a letter issued by the Vatican two days after US President Donald Trump attacked the pontiff on social media.

The pope, writing to participants of a Vatican meeting about the use of power in democratic societies, said democracies remained healthy only when they were rooted in ‌moral values.

“Lacking this foundation, (democracy) ‌risks becoming either a majoritarian tyranny ‌or a mask for the dominance of economic and technological elites,” said Leo in the letter.

The text, released as the pope was undertaking a 10-day tour of four African countries, did not directly address the US or name any specific democracies.

Trump sharply criticized Leo as “terrible,” after the ‌pope had emerged as a ‌growing critic of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

In his letter, the pope said the Catholic Church taught that ‌power could not be seen as an end in itself “but as a means ordered toward the common good.”

The pope also urged leaders in democratic societies to avoid any temptation to hoard power.