Police in Illinois are investigating a bomb threat at the home of Pope Leo XIV’s brother.
The New Lenox Police Department issued a press release on Thursday noting that its officers responded to the home around 6:30 pm on Friday in response to a bomb threat. New Lenox is a suburban area southwest of Chicago.
Police were dispatched to the scene and neighbors were asked to evacuate their homes while the threat was investigated, NBC 5 reports.
The Pope’s brother, John Prevost, lives in New Lenox.
Following a search of the area, police determined there was no active threat. No explosives or otherwise hazardous devices were found at the property, according to police.
The Will County Sheriff’s Office lent its bomb sniffing police dogs to the assist in the investigation, according to the press statement.
The bomb threat occurred amid an ongoing feud between President Donald Trump, his administration, and the Pope over the Catholic leader’s critical views of the war in Iran.
On Thursday, Trump told reporters that he “likes” the Pope’s brother Louis, who he described as “MAGA all the way.” He made the comments after being asked why he is fighting with the Pope.
“I have to do what’s right. The Pope has to understand that very simple. I have nothing against the Pope, his brothers, MAGA all the way. I like his brother, Louis. I’m not fighting with him,” Trump said. “The Pope made a statement. He says Iran can have a nuclear weapon. I say Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
The Pope never said that Iran can have a nuclear weapon. He has, however, been vocally critical of aggressor nations waging war, including the U.S. and the war in Iran.
Pope Leo has pushed back on Trump’s now infamous Truth Social post threatening to destroy Iran’s entire civilization, and has indirectly rebuked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s call for Americans to pray for the downfall of his enemies.
After Trump shared an AI image of himself as Christ healing the sick — which he tried to claim was an image of him as a doctor — the president faced backlash from Christians, leading him to delete the image.
Vice President JD Vance, a recent Catholic convert, also pushed back against the Pope, questioning the Catholic leader’s grasp on Catholic theology.
Trump made the baffling claim that the Pope was soft on crime and then later told reporters directly that he doesn’t like the head of the Catholic church.
“We don’t like a Pope that’s going to say that it’s OK to have a nuclear weapon. … He’s a man that doesn’t think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world,” Trump told reporters while referencing Iran. “I’m not a fan of Pope Leo.”
The president’s disapproval does not trouble Pope Leo.
“I have no fear of the Trump administration or speaking out loudly of the message of the Gospel, which is what I believe I am here to do, what the church is here to do,” Pope Leo told reporters this week.
He continued, saying his job wasn’t to be a politician, but a peacemaker.
“We are not politicians, we don’t deal with foreign policy with the same perspective (as) [Trump] might understand it,” the Pope said. “But I do believe in the message of the Gospel, as a peacemaker.”
