Donald Trump's Full Response to Pope Francis

Trump said the pope's comments about his Christianity were a "disgrace."

ByABC News
February 18, 2016, 1:09 PM

— -- Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump lashed out at Pope Francis for comments the pontiff made questioning the billionaire businessman's commitment to Christianity.

"A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian," Francis told reporters at the conclusion of his trip to Mexico this week. "This is not in the gospel."

Here is Trump's full written statement responding to the Pope:

"If and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, which as everyone knows is ISIS’s ultimate trophy, I can promise you that the Pope would have only wished and prayed that Donald Trump would have been President because this would not have happened. ISIS would have been eradicated unlike what is happening now with our all talk, no action politicians.

"The Mexican government and its leadership has made many disparaging remarks about me to the Pope, because they want to continue to rip off the United States, both on trade and at the border, and they understand I am totally wise to them. The Pope only heard one side of the story - he didn’t see the crime, the drug trafficking and the negative economic impact the current policies have on the United States. He doesn’t see how Mexican leadership is outsmarting President Obama and our leadership in every aspect of negotiation.

"For a religious leader to question a person’s faith is disgraceful. I am proud to be a Christian and as President I will not allow Christianity to be consistently attacked and weakened, unlike what is happening now, with our current President. No leader, especially a religious leader, should have the right to question another man’s religion or faith. They are using the Pope as a pawn and they should be ashamed of themselves for doing so, especially when so many lives are involved and when illegal immigration is so rampant."