U.S. President Donald Trump sparked controversy on Friday after posting a spoof image of himself dressed as the pope on his Truth Social platform. The digitally altered image, believed to be AI-generated, shows Trump in full papal regalia—including white robes, a gold crucifix, and the traditional miter—raising his right index finger toward the sky.
The post came days after Trump joked to reporters that he would like to be the next pope, as the Catholic Church prepares for a conclave following the death of Pope Francis on April 21.
When asked who he thought should succeed Francis, Trump quipped, “I’d like to be pope, that would be my number one choice.” He added that he had no specific preference but mentioned a cardinal in New York he described as “very good,” seemingly referring to Archbishop Timothy Dolan, a theological conservative and outspoken opponent of abortion.
The spoof image quickly drew backlash, especially from Catholic leaders. The New York State Catholic Conference issued a sharp rebuke on X (formerly Twitter), writing: “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.”
Trump had attended Pope Francis’s funeral last week—his first foreign trip since returning to office.
Roughly 20 percent of Americans identify as Catholic. Exit polls from the November election showed that approximately 60 percent of them supported Trump at the ballot box.
Pope Francis had previously been a vocal critic of Trump. During Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, Francis publicly condemned the idea of building a border wall with Mexico, stating: “Anyone, whoever he is, who only wants to build walls and not bridges is not a Christian.”
Cardinals are set to convene in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican on May 7 to elect the next pope in a closed-door conclave.
AFP
