Just minutes after launching a fierce social media attack on Pope Leo XIV on Sunday night, U.S. President Donald Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself on Truth Social seemingly portraying him as Jesus Christ, dressed in robes and using a glowing hand to heal a sick man in a hospital bed as a nurse and an American Eagle looked on.
The image also featured iconic American landmarks including the Statue of Liberty and the Lincoln Memorial, with a massive U.S. flag, warplanes, and eagle figures filling the sky behind him, alongside figures resembling soldiers transformed into angels.
The post carried telltale signs of AI generation, including distorted fingers, an incorrect number of stars on the flag, and gibberish text on a man's hat.
The image was shared less than an hour after Trump branded Pope Leo XIV "weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy," accusing the Pope of softness on Iran and claiming credit for Leo's election to the papacy. The post coincided with Orthodox Easter Sunday, adding another layer of controversy to the timing.
Former Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, once a staunch Trump ally, publicly condemned the image, writing that Trump had posted a picture of himself "as if he is replacing Jesus" on Orthodox Easter, and declared it went beyond blasphemy, calling it "an Antichrist spirit."
Rome-based Catholic media correspondent Elise Ann Allen of Crux said Trump's actions signaled he felt threatened by Pope Leo emerging as a growing and powerful figure on the international stage. A poll conducted by Shaw & Co. Research and Beacon Research found that among Catholic respondents, 48% approve of Trump's presidential actions while 52% disapprove.
