GPT-4o: The Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te is more than a theological document. The Trump administration’s policies, when viewed through this lens, fall grievously short of the Gospel ideal.

Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te vs. Trump Administration Policies on Poverty and Christian Ethics

by ChatGPT-4o

The Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te, issued by Pope Leo XIV in October 2025, is a sweeping call to all Christians to re-center their faith around love for the poor, modeled after the life of Jesus Christ. The document outlines a theologically rich and morally urgent appeal to see Christ in the poor, to address systemic injustice, and to make mercy and solidarity the foundation of society. When juxtaposed with the policies and rhetoric of the Trump administration, glaring discrepancies emerge—both in spirit and in substance. This essay analyzes those contrasts and concludes with recommendations for an administration that so often invokes divine authority.

The Heart of Dilexi Te: A Preferential Option for the Poor

At the core of Dilexi Te lies the Gospel imperative: love for God is inseparable from love for the poor. The exhortation traces biblical foundations for this ethic—from the Magnificat’s reversal of power, to the parable of the Last Judgment where salvation hinges on care for “the least of these” (Mt 25:40). It insists that contact with the poor is not optional charity but “a fundamental way of encountering the Lord of history”Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te….

Poverty, according to the document, is multidimensional: material, spiritual, systemic. Structural injustice, greed, and indifference are named explicitly as moral failures. Christians are called to not merely help the poor, but to live withthem, to recognize their dignity, and to reshape political and economic systems that perpetuate inequality.

The Trump Administration’s Track Record on the Poor

Despite campaign claims to champion the “forgotten man,” the Trump administration’s record reveals a consistent pattern of policies that harm the poor and favor the wealthy:

1. Cuts to Social Safety Nets
   The administration repeatedly proposed deep cuts to Medicaid, food stamps (SNAP), and housing assistance—programs that serve as lifelines to the materially poor.

2. Tax Policy Benefiting the Rich
   The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act overwhelmingly favored corporations and the wealthy. While it briefly lowered some middle-class tax rates, its long-term effects deepened inequality.

3. Dismantling Healthcare Protections
   Efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act (without a comprehensive replacement) would have left millions uninsured, disproportionately affecting the poor and disabled.

4. Immigration Policies that Target the Vulnerable
   Detaining asylum seekers, separating families at the border, and limiting legal immigration starkly contrast Dilexi Te’s call to “welcome the stranger” and to see migrants as “a living presence of the Lord”Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te….

5. Indifference to Prison Conditions
   The Trump administration rolled back consent decrees that monitored prison abuse, and offered little concern for rehabilitation or humane treatment—contrary to the Church’s exhortation to “proclaim liberty to the captives” and recognize the dignity of all imprisoned personsApostolic Exhortation Dilexi te….

6. Neglect of Environmental Justice
   Environmental deregulation under Trump disproportionately affected poor communities, who often live in areas exposed to pollution. Dilexi Te links care for the poor to broader systemic justice, including access to clean air, water, and sustainable living.

7. Vilification of Protest and Civil Disobedience
   Trump frequently attacked those advocating for racial and economic justice, equating protest with disorder. This stands in direct tension with the Gospel call to “denounce the oppressors” and to stand with the marginalized, even when unpopular.

The Discrepancy Between Invocation of God and Deeds

The Trump administration frequently invokes God and Christian identity, from campaign events featuring pastors blessing the candidate, to policy proposals allegedly rooted in Christian values. But Dilexi Te reminds us that authentic Christianity is judged not by slogans, but by proximity to the poor, by action not words:

• Empty Worship vs. True Religion
  The exhortation, quoting both the prophets and Church Fathers, warns against worship that coexists with injustice. Faith without works is dead (James 2:14–17), and religious displays devoid of mercy are condemned by Christ.

• Misuse of Prosperity Theology
  Trump-era rhetoric often mirrored a prosperity gospel: wealth as blessing, poverty as failure. Dilexi Te rebukes such logic as antithetical to the Gospel, calling it “a cruel blindness” to suggest that the poor “deserve” their condition.

• Meritocracy and Deservingness
  The Exhortation directly challenges the idea that only the “deserving” poor should receive support. It criticizes the ideology that success alone is a sign of virtue—an idea repeatedly reinforced by Trumpian narratives.

• Militarized Borders vs. Migrant Compassion
  The Trump administration’s obsession with border walls and enforcement contradicts the Church’s vision of a “world without barriers,” where the foreigner is embraced, not demonizedApostolic Exhortation Dilexi te….

Recommendations for the Trump Administration

If the Trump administration wishes to align its policies with the Gospel it so often claims to revere, Dilexi Te offers clear moral guidance:

1. Embed the Preferential Option for the Poor in Governance
   Design policies through the lens of the most vulnerable. Enshrine this principle in healthcare, education, housing, and justice.

2. Reverse Harmful Cuts to Social Programs
   Restore and expand funding for SNAP, Medicaid, and affordable housing, viewing them not as handouts but as instruments of human dignity.

3. Reform Immigration with Mercy and Justice
   End family separations, improve refugee reception, and ensure that asylum seekers are treated with the compassion due to every child of God.

4. Invest in Prison Rehabilitation and Reentry
   Prioritize restorative justice, reduce incarceration rates for non-violent offenses, and humanize correctional systems.

5. Tackle Structural Racism and Inequality
   Support community programs addressing economic, racial, and environmental justice. Listen to those protesting systemic oppression—not with threats, but with humility.

6. Reject Prosperity Theology and Embrace Christian Solidarity
   Make clear that Christianity does not equate wealth with worth. Follow Christ’s example in emptying oneself for others.

7. Be a Church of the Beatitudes
   Walk “poor with the poor.” Not through photo ops, but sustained commitment to policy rooted in humility and service.

Conclusion

The Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te is more than a theological document—it is a mirror held up to any government or leader who dares claim to act in God’s name. The Trump administration’s policies, when viewed through this lens, fall grievously short of the Gospel ideal. Invoking divine blessing while enacting laws that harm the poor, ignore the sick, criminalize the migrant, and reward the powerful, amounts to a betrayal of the very faith it claims to defend.

Christianity, Dilexi Te insists, is not about dominion, but solidarity. If the Trump administration seeks divine endorsement, it must begin where Christ began: with the poor, the outcast, the prisoner, the stranger. Otherwise, its claim to Christian identity remains not only hollow—but dangerous.