Two Catholic bishops in Illinois expressed support for Pope Leo XIV after President Donald Trump publicly criticized the pontiff.

Peoria’s bishop said Tuesday he was “very disappointed” by President Donald Trump’s “personal attack” on Pope Leo XIV.

The Most Rev. Louis Tylka, bishop for the Catholic Diocese of Peoria, issued a statement calling Trump’s remarks “unbecoming of the Office of President.”

“The Holy Father speaks as a pastor, not a politician,” Tylka said. “He rightfully is voicing the message of the Gospel, which is a message of peace. As the leader of the Catholic Church throughout the world, Pope Leo speaks to matters that call all people to seek to build a world of peace, mutual respect, and which upholds the dignity of humanity. I believe the president owes the Holy Father an apology.”

Further downstate, Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki said he learned of Trump’s “verbal attacks” on Pope Leo while Paprocki was on pilgrimage in Poland.

“I am dismayed by President Trump’s rhetoric, and I stand with Pope Leo,” Paprocki said in a statement. “It is also blasphemous for President Trump to pretend he is Jesus in a now-deleted Truth Social AI-generated post.”

Other high-ranking clerics in Illinois were silent on the issue. Requests for comment left with the Diocese of Rockford and the Diocese of Joliet were not returned. Both dioceses have news links on their websites, but neither showed a recent statement on the rift between the Trump administration and the Holy See.

The Diocese of Belleville, on the other hand, is in transition. The Very Rev. Godfrey Mullen, O.S.B., was named the 10th bishop on Monday (amid the flurry of statements) and awaits an installation Mass.

Weeks of shaded criticism between the Vatican and the White House spilled into the open over the weekend when Trump issued a Truth Social post calling the pope “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy.”

“I’m not a big fan of Pope Leo,” Trump wrote.

Chicago-born Leo, when asked about Trump’s criticism, replied he has “no fear of the Trump administration.”

Trump’s comments appeared to follow a broadcast of “60 Minutes” in which a panel of high-ranking clerics, including Cardinal Blaise Cupich, Chicago’s archbishop, spoke about disputed issues, including the war in Iran.

Cupich is active on social media but has not issued a statement directly commenting on the White House spat with the Vatican.

A former bishop of Joliet, however, delivered an indirect statement against Trump. Archbishop Ronald Hicks, elevated from Bishop of Joliet to Archbishop of New York, reposted a statement by the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“I am disheartened that the President chose to write such disparaging words about the Holy Father,” Archbishop Paul Coakley had written on the USCCB’s website and X page. “Pope Leo is not his rival; nor is the Pope a politician. He is the Vicar of Christ who speaks from the truth of the Gospel and for the care of souls.”

Hicks then added, “Thank you, Archbishop Coakley, for your strong statement!”