Donald Trump is scheduled to present a Bible reading on television amidst his ongoing disagreement with Pope Leo XIV, a prominent critic of the US and its stance on the Israeli-Iranian conflict.
The US president will recite verses 11-22 from Chapter 7 of the Book of Chronicles at 6 pm EST (11 pm BST) this Tuesday as part of ‘America Reads the Bible’, a week-long commemoration marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. The occasion is described as a “spiritual celebration of our nation’s foundational principles and a reminder to rekindle the enduring truths that guide us today,” as stated on the ‘America Reads the Bible’ website.
This development occurs against a backdrop of escalating tensions between Trump and Pope Leo, with Senator John Kennedy, a Republican lawmaker, denouncing what he labeled as the president’s “holy crusade” against the Pope.
Trump faced criticism from various quarters, including his own supporters, after he posted and subsequently removed an AI-generated image portraying himself in a likeness akin to Jesus, purportedly healing a sick individual in a hospital bed.
Shortly before sharing the image on April 12, Trump launched a verbal attack on the Pope via Truth Social, accusing him of being “WEAK on Crime” and detrimental to Foreign Policy. He expressed his disapproval of the Pope’s stance on Iran possessing nuclear weapons and criticized the Pope’s views on US actions towards Venezuela.
Furthermore, Trump insinuated that Leo’s election was influenced by American interests to counter his presidency, stating that Leo would not hold his position if Trump were not in the White House.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian decried what he viewed as the disrespect shown to Jesus while expressing solidarity with the Pope. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a Catholic and a close ally of Trump, deemed the president’s remarks about the Pope as inappropriate.
Meloni emphasized the Pope’s role as the leader of the Catholic Church, defending his advocacy for peace and condemnation of all forms of warfare. Notably, Meloni had refrained from openly criticizing Trump’s previous comments about the Pope.
On April 15, Trump shared another AI-generated image portraying a religious-themed depiction of himself, accompanied by a cryptic caption suggesting divine intervention in his favor.
In a subsequent post on Truth Social, Trump shared a screenshot of a post showing a depiction of a Jesus-like figure embracing him, posted by an account named “Irish for Trump” (@Dkelly4congress).
The post implied a belief in divine intervention amid revelations of heinous acts, with the caption speculating about God intervening in favor of Trump.
Pope Leo XIV, speaking aboard the papal plane last Monday, expressed his lack of fear towards the Trump administration and reiterated his commitment to proclaiming the Gospel message boldly.
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