United States President Donald Trump posted an artificial intelligence-generated image of himself dressed as pope because the mourning of Pope Francis continues and simply days earlier than the conclave to elect his successor is about to start. Trump’s motion drew rebukes from a bunch representing Catholic bishops in New York and amongst Italians.
The picture, shared Friday night time on Trump’s Fact Social web site and later reposted by the White Home on its official X account, raised eyebrows on social media and on the Vatican, which continues to be within the interval of 9 days of official mourning following Francis’ dying on April 21. Catholic cardinals have been celebrating day by day Lots in his reminiscence and are attributable to open the conclave to elect his successor on Wednesday.
The dying of a pope and election of one other is a matter of utmost solemnity for Catholics, for whom the pope is Christ’s vicar on Earth. That’s all of the extra true in Italy, the place the papacy is held in excessive esteem even by nonreligious Italians.
The picture that includes Trump in a white cassock and pointed miter, or bishop’s hat, was the subject of a number of questions in the course of the Vatican’s day by day conclave briefing Saturday. Italian and Spanish information experiences lamented its poor style and stated it was offensive, on condition that the interval of official mourning continues to be underway.
Left-leaning former Premier Matteo Renzi stated the picture was shameful. “That is a picture that offends believers, insults establishments and reveals that the chief of the right-wing world enjoys clowning round,” Renzi wrote on X. “In the meantime, the U.S. financial system dangers recession and the greenback loses worth. The sovereignists are doing injury, in every single place.”
The Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, declined to remark.
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In the USA, the New York State Catholic Convention, which represents the bishops of the state in working with authorities, accused Trump of mockery.
“There may be nothing intelligent or humorous about this picture, Mr. President,” they wrote. “We simply buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a brand new successor of St. Peter. Don’t mock us.”
Italy’s left-leaning La Repubblica additionally featured the picture on its homepage Saturday with a commentary accusing Trump of “pathological megalomania.”
The White Home didn’t instantly reply to questions concerning the backlash to the picture or why the president had shared the picture.
However Jack Posobiec, a distinguished far-right influencer and Trump ally who just lately participated in a Catholic prayer occasion in March at Trump’s Florida resort, defended the president.
“I’m Catholic. We’ve all been making jokes concerning the upcoming Pope choice all week. It’s known as a humorousness,” he wrote on X.
The episode comes after Trump joked final week about his curiosity within the emptiness. “I’d prefer to be pope. That will be my primary alternative,” the thrice married president, who shouldn’t be Catholic, instructed reporters.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a detailed Trump ally, piled on.
“I used to be excited to listen to that President Trump is open to the concept of being the following Pope. This would actually be a darkish horse candidate, however I might ask the papal conclave and Catholic trustworthy to maintain an open thoughts about this chance!” Graham, R-S.C., wrote on X. “The primary Pope-U.S. President mixture has many upsides. Anticipating white smoke…. Trump MMXXVIII!”
Vice President JD Vance, who’s Catholic and was one of many final international officers to satisfy with Francis earlier than the pope died, additionally joked about Secretary of State Marco Rubio turning into pope, suggesting Rubio may add it to the lengthy record of titles he holds, together with nationwide safety adviser and performing archivist.
Past floating himself for the job, Trump additionally has put in a plug for Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York.
“I’ve no choice. I have to say, we’ve a cardinal that occurs to be out a spot known as New York who’s superb. So we’ll see what occurs,” he stated.
Dolan, 75, is one in all 10 U.S. cardinals who shall be voting within the conclave, however Trump’s pitch may need price Dolan help.
The rationale conclaves are held in secrecy, with cardinals sequestered for the length, is to stop exterior secular powers from influencing their alternative, as occurred in centuries previous.
There may be an outdated saying about campaigning for the job of pope or of being promoted excessively, particularly by outsiders: In case you “enter a conclave as pope, you allow as a cardinal.”
Whereas Trump attended Francis’ funeral, he and Vance have clashed with U.S. bishops normally and Francis specifically over the administration’s laborious line stance on immigration and its efforts to deport migrants en masse. Proper earlier than he was hospitalized in February for pneumonia, Francis issued a sturdy rebuke of the administration’s mass deportation plans and Vance’s theological justification of it.
Over 12 years as pope, Francis tried to remake the U.S. Catholic hierarchy extra in his picture, elevating pastors who prioritized social justice and migration points over tradition warriors who had been extra favored by his extra doctrinaire predecessors St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI. A brand new pope who’s extra conservative may reverse that effort.
Trump has nominated as his ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch, whose Catholicvote.org has been aggressively protecting the pre-conclave days on the Vatican. It was one of many essential disseminators in English-speaking media of a report, flatly and formally denied by the Vatican, that Cardinal Pietro Parolin had had a well being scare this previous week that required medical consideration.
Parolin was the secretary of state below Francis and is seen as a number one contender to be pope. He’s additionally the principle architect of the Vatican’s China coverage and its controversial 2018 cope with Beijing over bishop nominations — a deal that the was sharply criticized by the primary Trump administration.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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