CNN
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US President Donald Trump posted his own image of AI as Pope, prompting accusations of bad taste in the Roman Catholic community.
A few days ago, joking that he wanted to be Pope, Trump raised his index finger late Friday to post an image of his digital doctor wearing a white cassock and a pope headdress. It was then re-shared by the White House on the official X account.
Last month, Trump, who is not a Catholic, came less than a week later. The period of official mourning for the Pope is still observed by the Vatican.
While this image does not suggest that it is a serious distraction from the challenge of choosing the next leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni declined to comment on the issue.
“Not funny, teacher,” wrote 66-year-old Filipino Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David in a Facebook post.
New York archbishop Timothy Dolan was also important when journalists were questioned before delivering Mass in Rome on Sunday.
When asked if he was angry at the image, Cardinal Dolan suggested Trump’s favor with the next Pope – “Well, that wasn’t good.”
Similarly, Father Gerald Murray, a priest of the Archdiocese of New York who attended the Mass of Cardinal Dolan Church on Sunday, said Trump’s post was “silly… you won’t.”
Matteo Renzi, the former Italian prime minister, condemned the image as an attack on people of Catholicism. “This is an image that angers followers, humiliates the institutions, and shows that right-wing world leaders enjoy clowns,” he writes in X.
Trump’s post attracted attention from Italian media. “Infant” was the term that Italy’s Daily La Republica condemned as “pathological exaggeration.”
In St. Peter’s Square, CNN asked several groups of American tourists what they thought, and no one asked them if they wanted to give their name, but their reaction ranged from “absurd” to “typical.”
The office of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Trump’s international ally, said they would not comment on the issue.
The image also spurred backlash among American Catholic groups. The New York State Catholic Conference explains itself to represent the Bishop of New York, which he states in his post X. “There’s nothing smart or interesting about this image, President.
“We have just buried our beloved Pope Francis and Cardinals are about to enter a strict conclave to elect a new successor to St. Peter. Don’t laugh at us.”
However, the White House defended Trump as a professional Catholic.
“President Trump paid tribute to Pope Francis and flew to Italy to attend the funeral. He was a solid champion for Catholics and religious freedom,” spokesperson Carolyn Leavitt said when asked to respond to criticism.
Others in Trump’s circle emphasized that it was a joke.
“I’m Catholic. We’ve all been joking about the future Pope’s choices for the whole week. It’s called a sense of humor.”
This is not the first time Trump has sparked a controversy with AI-generated images. He faced backlash after posting footage imagining war-torn Gaza as a resort like a Gulf state with his golden statue.
