A digitally manipulated image depicting United States President Donald Trump dressed as the pope has triggered widespread condemnation, particularly among Catholics, amid accusations of religious mockery and political provocation.
The controversy erupted just days before a historic Vatican conclave to elect the successor to Pope Francis.
The image - shared initially on Mr Trump’s Truth Social account and later reposted by the official White House profile on X (formerly Twitter) - features the president clad in traditional papal vestments and headdress, seated in an ornate chair with a raised forefinger.
Though clearly generated using artificial intelligence, the timing and tone of the post have sparked intense criticism from religious leaders, political opponents, and international observers.
The reaction from Catholic organisations was swift and unequivocal. The New York State Catholic Conference wrote: “There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr President. We just buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a new successor of St Peter. Do not mock us.”
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York - widely speculated to be among the possible papal contenders - said the image “wasn’t good” and expressed hope that the president had no involvement. Meanwhile, Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni declined to comment, maintaining the Holy See’s silence ahead of the conclave, which begins on 7 May.
International response has been equally scathing. Italy’s former Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, condemned the post on social media, stating: “This is an image that offends believers, insults institutions, and shows that the leader of the global right enjoys being a clown.”
The left-leaning newspaper La Repubblica also featured the image prominently, describing it as an example of “pathological megalomania”.
Pressed on the matter during another press conference, President Trump suddenly denied any responsibility for the image’s creation or dissemination.
“I had nothing to do with it,” he told reporters. “Somebody made a picture of me dressed like the pope and they put it out on the internet. That’s not me that did it. I’ve got no idea where it came from - maybe it was AI. I know nothing about it. Actually, my wife thought it was cute.”
Critics, however, questioned the plausibility of this denial, particularly given that the image was first posted to his personal social media platform and then re-shared by the White House.
In defence, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “President Trump flew to Italy to pay his respects for Pope Francis and attend his funeral, and he has been a staunch champion for Catholics and religious liberty.”
The controversy follows remarks made by Mr Trump a week ago, in which he joked to journalists about wanting to become the next pope. When asked about his preferred candidate to succeed Francis, he replied: “I’d like to be pope, that would be my number one choice,” later adding that Cardinal Dolan was “very good”.
Such statements, in conjunction with the AI-generated image, have been interpreted by many as flippant and insensitive, particularly given the solemnity of the period following the pontiff’s funeral.
