Pope Leo issues warning on democracy after Trump's criticism

(Patria) - Pope Leo yesterday warned of the risk of democracies sliding into "majority tyranny", in a letter published by the Vatican two days after US President Donald Trump attacked the pope on social media, Reuters reported.

The first American pope, writing to participants of a Vatican meeting on the use of power in democratic societies, said democracies remain healthy only when rooted in moral values.

"Without this foundation, (democracy) risks becoming either a majority tyranny or a mask for the domination of economic and technological elites," Leo said in the letter.

The text, published while the pope is on a ten-day tour of four African countries, did not directly address the US nor name any specific democracy.

Trump sharply criticised Leo as "terrible" on Sunday evening, after the pope in recent weeks emerged as an increasingly vocal critic of the US-Israeli war against Iran.
Leo said a day later that he plans to continue criticising the war, despite Trump's comments.

In Tuesday's letter, the pope said the Catholic Church teaches that power cannot be considered an end in itself "but a means directed towards the common good".

"This implies that the legitimacy of authority does not depend on the accumulation of economic or technological power, but on the wisdom and virtue with which it is exercised," Leo said.

The pope called on leaders in democratic societies to avoid any temptation to amass power.

"Moderation... proves crucial for the legitimate use of authority, because true moderation curbs excessive self-aggrandisement and acts as a guardrail against the abuse of power."