John Prevost, the brother of Pope Leo XIV, discussed on Wednesday how he and his pontiff sibling manage the MAGA politics of their older brother, Louis.
During an appearance on CNN, John told Erin Burnett that the three brothers have a weekly phone call.
He mentioned that they “keep politics to a limit.”
“Sometimes the topic arises, but neither of us changes our opinion, so why discuss it?” John elaborated.
“We focus on our lives, future plans, and the strong bond we share as brothers. After all, family disagreements happen, but family is forever,” he said.
Burnett remarked that their continued communication, despite political differences, could be encouraging for others.
Louis publicly declared his backing for Donald Trump shortly after his brother became the first U.S.-born pope last May. “I’m a MAGA type, and I have my beliefs,” he stated to Piers Morgan after it was revealed he had shared offensive material targeting Democrats online. He subsequently met Trump at the White House.
Since then, Trump and Leo have had public disagreements, with Trump criticizing the pope for opposing the war with Iran and for his stance on U.S. immigration policies.
In another part of the interview, John recounted a viral story about his brother’s experience as the newly elected pope. A bank employee hung up on him while he was trying to update his contact information.
“She asked for the bank account number,” John recalled to Burnett. “He provided it. ‘What is your Social Security number?’ he was asked. He provided that too. Then came ‘What was your former address?’ and he gave that as well. There were about four or five different questions, all of which he answered.”
John continued, “It went on for so long that I said, ‘Ma’am, it might help you to know that you’re speaking to my brother, who is in Rome right now. You’re talking to the pope.’”
“She replied, ‘Oh, really?’ and then hung up,” John recounted. “And that was the end of the call.”
Burnett inquired if the employee might have thought it was a prank.
“A prank call, sure,” John responded. “One of the provincials had to go to the bank to sort it out for him.”
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