The Catholic Defender: My position on President Trump has not changed, I maintain that he is not the same person he was as a young man. The Brick of Trump tells the story.

The "Brick of Trump" refers to a story involving Tom Zimmer (often called the "Hermit of Loreto") and his prophetic prayer for Donald Trump. While the story is frequently associated with the Holy House of Mary in Loreto, Italy, the specific "brick" details actually pertains to St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

Tom Zimmer was an American who lived as a hermit in Loreto, Italy, home to the Holy House of Mary (the Santa Casa), which tradition says was the Virgin Mary's home transported from Nazareth.

In the early 1980s, Zimmer reportedly claimed to have received a word from God that a man named Donald Trump would lead America back to God.

When the "Holy Door" (Porta Sancta) of St. Peter’s Basilica was being bricked up at the end of a Jubilee year, Zimmer wrote Donald J. Trump’s name on one of the bricks used to seal the doorway.

Zimmer reportedly did this so that Trump’s name would be present at the heart of the Church, coming under the "sound of all the prayers" offered in the Basilica for years to come. 

Tom Zimmer: He was a World War II veteran and author of "The 24 Hours of the Passion" who moved to Loreto to live a life of prayer.

The "Holy Door" (Porta Sancta) of St. Peter's Basilica is a sacred entrance traditionally sealed with a brick wall. It remains closed and bricked up for approximately 25 years at a time, only to be opened during a Jubilee Year.

Before the final bricks are laid, a small metal capsule (often made of bronze and lead) is placed inside the wall. It contains a parchment document attesting to the Jubilee, coins from that year, and the keys to the door.

For the most recent sealing in January 2026, approximately 3,200 bricks were used to block the passage.

To begin a new Jubilee, the wall is dismantled a few days before the official ceremony to retrieve the capsule and keys.

Traditionally, the Pope would strike the brick wall three times with a silver or gold hammer to begin its demolition.

For safety reasons, the physical demolition of the wall is now handled by workers in advance, and the Pope performs a symbolic opening by pushing the bronze doors.

Most Recent Opening: December 24, 2024, for the 2025 Jubilee of Hope.

The bricks used to seal the door are often ornate, featuring papal symbols like the crossed keys and tiara, as well as the year of the Jubilee. Historically, pilgrims would try to collect fragments of the demolished wall as relics. Today, authentic bricks from past Jubilees are highly prized by collectors and are sometimes gifted to significant figures or institutions.

The story of this prophecy typically refers to Thomas Zimmer (often spelled Tom Zimmer or sometimes mistakenly as Zimmerman), a lay Catholic known as the "Hermit of Loreto," who predicted in the early 1980s that Donald Trump would lead America back to God.

For my one time brother John Benko, I maintain that President Trump is bathed surrounded by faithful Catholics praying the Rosary for him. Which I continue to pray for John Benko, my one time close Brother. We will not agree on President Trump nor Medjugorje. I wish John and his T4P well.