Trump criticizes with AI image as a Pope in front of the conclave

Trump criticizes with AI image as a Pope in front of the conclave

President Donald Trump has published a picture of himself from artificial intelligence, on which he is dressed as a Pope, while the grief for Pope Francis stops and is created just a few days before the conclave that is called to choose his successor. Trump's campaign met with sharp criticism from a group that represents the Catholic bishops in New York, as well as in Italy.

reactions to the picture

The picture that was shared on Friday evening on Trump's Truth Social and later also posted the White House on its official X account caused excitement both on social media and in the Vatican. In the Vatican there is currently a nine -day mourning period after the death of Francis on April 21. The Catholic cardinals celebrate trade fairs every day and are supposed to open the conclave to the choice of his successor on Wednesday.

the seriousness of the situation

The death of a Pope and the choice of a new Pope are of the utmost importance for Catholics, since the Pope is considered the deputy of Christ on earth. This applies in particular to Italy, where the papacy itself is highly respected by non -believers.

public outrage

The picture that Trump shows in a white pope robe and with a pointed miter was the topic of several questions during the daily press conference of the Vatican on Saturday. Italian and Spanish media reported on the bad taste of the picture and described it as insulting, since the official mourning period continues.

The left ex-premier Matteo Renzi described the picture as shameful. "This picture insults believers, mocks institutions and shows that the leader of the right world likes to go around," Renzi wrote to X. "Meanwhile, the US economy risks a recession and the dollar loses value. The sovereigns do damage everywhere."

The reaction of the White House

The Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni refused to comment. In the United States, the New York State Catholic Conference, which represents the bishops of the state, accused Trump mockery.

"There is nothing clever or funny in this picture, Mr. President", wrote. Bed, and the cardinals are about to choose a new successor to St. Peter.

contradiction and humor

Jack Posobiec, a prominent right-wing extremist influencer and Trump supporter, who recently participated in a Catholic prayer event in Trump's holiday resort in Florida, also defended the president. "I am Catholic. We made jokes about the upcoming pope choice all week. This is called humor", he wrote on x .

Trump and the choice of the new Pope

The incident follows after Trump made jokes about his interest in the vacancy last week. "I would like to be a Pope. That would be my first choice," said the president, who is not Catholic, married three times.

sens. Lindsey Graham, a close Trump pendant, also enthusiastically commented on the idea: "I was excited to hear that President Trump is open to the opportunity to become the next pope. That would really be a candidate out of the background, but I would ask the pope conversion and the believing Catholics to stay open with this opportunity!" Graham, R-S.C., Wrote on x . "The combination of Pope and US President has many advantages. We are looking for the white smoke ... Trump Mmxxviii!"

The role of cardinals

The Vice President JD Vance, who is Catholic and was one of the last foreign civil servants who met Francis before the Pope's death, also joked that Foreign Minister Marco Rubio could become Pope, and suggested that Rubio add this to his long list of titles, including national security advisors and acting archivists.

In addition to mentioning his himself for the job, Trump also brought Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York.

"I have no favorite. I have to say we have a cardinal who happens to come from a place called New York, and it is very good. Let's see what happens," he said.

dolan, 75, is one of ten US cardinals that will choose in the conclave, but Trump's statement may have cost Dolan's support.

The influence of the Vatican

The reason why complaves are kept secret while the cardinals are isolated, external secular powers cannot intervene in their decisions, as was the case in past centuries.

There is an old saying about the competition for the papal post or about excessive advertising, especially from outsiders: If you "enter a conk as a Pope, leave it as a cardinal."

Although Trump took part in Francis' funeral, he and Vance stood in the general opposition to the US bishops and in particular Francis with regard to the hard line of the government in relation to immigration and its efforts to deport migrants in a manner. Especially before he was taken to the hospital in February for pneumonia, Francis criticized the deportation plans of the government and Vances theological justification.

over twelve years as a Pope, Francis tried to redesign the US Catholic hierarchy in his picture, and promoted pastors that prioritized social justice and migrant questions higher than cultural warriors who were more dogmatic in his dogmatic predecessors John Paul II and Benedict XVI. were preferred. A new Pope who is more conservative could reverse these efforts.

Trump nominated Brian Burch as his ambassador to the Holy Stool. His website catholicvote.org has intensively followed the days before the conclave in the Vatican. It was one of the main broadcasters of a report in English -language media, which was decided and officially denied by the Vatican, according to which Cardinal Pietro Parolin recently had a health incident that required medical help.

slogan was the State Secretary under Francis and is considered one of the leading candidates for the papal office. He is also the main person responsible for the China policy of the Vatican and the controversial agreement of 2018 with Beijing about the bishop's nominations-an agreement that was sharply criticized by the first Trump administration.