‘Do not mock us’: Catholic Church’s fury after Donald Trump posts AI image of himself as pope

The post comes days after the President joked that he would like to be the next pope, days ahead of the start of the conclave to elect the successor of Pope Francis.

President Donald Trump AI image of himself as the Pope. SourceTruthSocial

President Donald Trump posted an artificial intelligence-generated image of himself dressed as pope just days before the conclave to elect Pope Francis’ successor is set to begin. Mr Trump’s action drew rebukes from some in the Catholic Church.

The image, shared Saturday (AEST) on Mr Trump’s Truth Social site and later reposted by the White House on its official X account, raised eyebrows on social media and at the Vatican, which is still in the period of nine days of official mourning following Francis’ death on April 21. Catholic cardinals have been celebrating daily Masses in his memory and are due to open the conclave to elect his successor on Wednesday.

President Donald Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself as the Pope. Source: TruthSocial

The image featuring Mr Trump in a white cassock and pointed mitre, was the topic of several questions during the Vatican’s daily conclave briefing Saturday. Italian and Spanish news reports lamented its poor taste and said it was offensive, given that the period of official mourning is still underway.

Left-leaning former Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi said the image was shameful. “This is an image that offends believers, insults institutions and shows that the leader of the right-wing world enjoys clowning around,” Renzi wrote on X. “Meanwhile, the US economy risks recession and the dollar loses value. The sovereignists are doing damage, everywhere.”

The Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, declined to comment.

In the US, the New York State Catholic Conference, which represents the bishops of the state in working with government, accused Mr Trump of mockery.

“There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President,” they wrote. “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.”

Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trumpin the front row at Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican last weekend. Picture: AFP

Italy’s left-leaning La Repubblica also featured the image on its homepage Saturday with a commentary accusing Trump of “pathological megalomania”.

Asked to respond to the criticism, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that, “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.”

Jack Posobiec, a prominent far-right influencer and Trump ally who recently participated in a Catholic prayer event in March at Mr Trump’s Florida resort, also defended the president.

“I’m Catholic. We’ve all been making jokes about the upcoming Pope selection all week. It’s called a sense of humour,” he wrote on X.

The episode comes after Mr Trump joked last week about his interest in the vacancy. “I’d like to be pope. That would be my number one choice,” the thrice married president, who is not Catholic, told reporters.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, piled on.

“I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the idea of being the next Pope. This would truly be a dark horse candidate, but I would ask the papal conclave and Catholic faithful to keep an open mind about this possibility!” Senator Graham wrote on X. “The first Pope-U.S. President combination has many upsides. Watching for white smoke…. Trump MMXXVIII!”

Vice President JD Vance, who is Catholic and was one of the last foreign officials to meet with Francis before the pope died, also joked about Secretary of State Marco Rubio becoming pope, suggesting Mr Rubio could add it to the long list of titles he holds, including national security adviser and acting archivist.

Beyond floating himself for the job, Mr Trump also has put in a plug for Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York.

“I have no preference. I must say, we have a cardinal that happens to be out a place called New York who’s very good. So we’ll see what happens,” he said.

AP