‘You’ve Used Jesus as a Mascot’—‘Piers Morgan Uncensored’ Panelists Slam Pastor Douglas Wilson

On the April 20 episode of “Piers Morgan Uncensored,” two progressive panelists accused controversial Idaho Pastor Douglas Wilson of being a wolf in sheep’s clothing, of hating “everybody,” and of using “Jesus as a mascot.” The pastor defended himself, as well as the actions—but not the words or posts—of President Donald Trump.

In addition to Wilson, who serves as senior pastor of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, Morgan’s show featured two Never Trumpers: Tim Miller, a gay man who hosts “The Bulwark Podcast,” and Wajahat Ali, a progressive Muslim who writes The Left Hook on Substack.

The men debated the pope’s role, Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo, recent statements by J.D. Vance and Pete Hegseth, developments in the Iran war, Christian teachings, Trump’s faith advisers, and the MAGA base.

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Pastor Douglas Wilson: ‘The Pope Was a Chicago Lefty’

To begin, host Piers Morgan referenced his interview with Italian Sen. Matteo Renzi. The country’s former prime minister had lashed out at President Trump, saying it was blasphemous to post images of himself as Jesus and “stupid” to attack the pope.

RELATED: ‘Outrageous Blasphemy’—Christians Respond to Now-Deleted Image of President Trump as Jesus

Pastor Douglas Wilson agreed that the image of Trump in a Jesus-style robe was blasphemous as well as tacky. Regarding the president’s tiff with the pontiff, Wilson said, “The pope was a Chicago lefty before he became pope, and he is speaking bromides, inserting God into a geopolitical event while at the same time objecting to other people injecting God.”

The pope, as a spiritual leader, “needs to do more than wave his hands over a geopolitical mess and speak in bromides and then back it off and say, ‘I wasn’t talking about President Trump,’” said Wilson.

The pastor, who has labeled himself a Christian nationalist, maintained that if the pope is allowed to apply “his understanding of the faith” to international relations, the same should apply to Pete Hegseth. The defense secretary attends a Christ Church plant in Washington, D.C.

Tim Miller, a “cradle Catholic,” told Wilson, “Pete Hegseth is not the pope” and said America has a separation of church and state. “I know Pete Hegseth is your star pupil,” he continued. “Maybe [he] should read the Bible and not watch ‘Pulp Fiction.’” At a Pentagon worship service last week, Hegseth quoted a fictional prayer from the 1994 R-rated movie.

RELATED: Pete Hegseth Quotes Fake Bible Verse From ‘Pulp Fiction’ During Pentagon Prayer

Miller defended Pope Leo’s comments about pursuing peace as being “in line with what we’ve heard” from previous pontiffs. He also said Vice President J.D. Vance, “who’s been a Catholic for two minutes,” would “benefit from listening to the pope.” Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, said at a Turning Point USA conference last week that the pope should “be careful” discussing “matters of theology.”

Wajahat Ali, who attended a Jesuit Catholic high school, referenced Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:15 about false prophets coming as ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing, saying, “That’s for you, Pastor Wilson.” As for Trump picking a fight with Pope Leo, currently the most popular person in America, Ali said it’s not only blasphemous but “terrible politics.”

Wilson responded:

The one thing we can say about Trump is that he’s not a wolf in sheep’s clothing. If anything, he’s a wolf in wolf’s clothing, or quite possibly a sheep in wolf’s clothing. The Pope, who is doing all these “God is in favor of pussy willows and rainbows” [comments], that doesn’t cut it. The Iranian regime is a murderous regime.