US President Donald Trump on Monday removed a social media post featuring an AI-generated image that appeared to depict him in a Jesus-like role, following criticism from religious leaders who accused him of blasphemy.
The image, shared on Trump’s Truth Social platform, showed him wearing flowing red and white robes, touching the forehead of a seemingly ill man, with light emanating from his hand and head.
An American flag was visible in the background, while several figures appeared to look up at him in reverence.
Posted late on Sunday, the image was deleted on Monday.
When asked about it, Trump denied any intention of portraying himself as Jesus Christ.
“I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor and had to do Red Cross,” he told journalists. “It’s supposed to be me as a doctor, making people better. And I do make people better. I make people a lot better.”
The post sparked outrage among prominent conservative Christians, many of whom are among Trump’s strongest supporters.
“I don’t know if the President thought he was being funny or if he is under the influence of some substance or what possible explanation he could have for this OUTRAGEOUS blasphemy,” Megan Basham, a conservative journalist and commentator, wrote on X.
“He needs to take this down immediately and ask for forgiveness from the American people and then from God.”
Trump has previously used religious imagery in his online posts. During his 2023 bank fraud trial, he shared an illustration showing him seated beside Jesus in a courtroom.
His advisers have also at times portrayed him in a Christ-like manner. At a White House Easter lunch earlier this month, televangelist Paula White-Cain, one of his spiritual advisers, compared him to Jesus.
Following the July 2024 assassination attempt against him, Trump has increasingly framed his survival as divinely ordained, according to observers.
“Many people have told me that God spared my life for a reason, and that reason was to save our country and to restore America to greatness,” Trump said in a post-election speech.
Experts say the episode could deepen tensions within parts of his support base, particularly among religious conservatives already uneasy about Middle East policy and criticism from Catholic leaders.
However, analysts noted that while some supporters have expressed discomfort, there is little indication of a broader withdrawal of backing from his core base.