Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines head on Trump pope tweet: Insensitive, not funny
MANILA: Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David denounced the artificial intelligence (AI)-generated photo shared by US President Donald Trump that portrayed him as the pope.
'The following AI-generated photo was posted by the US president himself, a few days after he attended the funeral of Pope Francis and while the Catholic world is still mourning. With all due respect to his office and to the American people, we'd like him to know it's not funny,' said David, Kalookan bishop and president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.
The Catholic Church concluded on Sunday (May 4) its nine days of mourning after Pope Francis was laid to rest on April 26. But speculations on who will be the next leader of the Catholic Church have grown louder ahead of the conclave set to begin on Wednesday.
David, who will take part in that assembly, again reminded the faithful that 'The conclave is a sacred moment, guided not by popularity or strategy, but by prayer, humility and the collective listening of the Church's shepherds to God's will.'
In the United States, the New York State Catholic Conference said: 'There is nothing clever or funny about this image, Mr. President. We just buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a new successor of St. Peter. Do not mock us.'
The image featuring Trump in a white cassock and pointed miter, or bishop's hat, was reposted by the White House from his Truth Social site.
It was the topic of several questions during the Vatican's conclave briefing on Saturday, while Italian and Spanish news reports lamented its poor taste. — AP and Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Praying the world halts climate change? There's now a Catholic Mass for that
FILE PHOTO: Pope Leo XIV celebrates the Mass on the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles in St Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican June 29, 2025. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File Photo VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -A new rite published by the Vatican on Thursday will allow priests to celebrate a Mass to exhort Catholics to exercise care for the Earth, in the latest push by the 1.4-billion-member global Church to address global climate change. For centuries, Catholic priests have been able to celebrate special Masses to pray for their country, give thanks after a harvest or ask God to end a natural disaster. The new "Mass for the care of creation," prepared by two Vatican offices, allows priests to pray that Catholics will "lovingly care" for creation and "learn to live in harmony with all creatures". "This Mass … calls us to be faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to us – not only in daily choices and public policies, but also in our prayer, our worship, and our way of living in the world," said Cardinal Michael Czerny, presenting the rite at a Vatican press conference on Thursday. Catholic priests have the possibility of offering Masses for a range of special needs. The new rite, approved by Pope Leo, is the 50th option offered by the Vatican. The late Pope Francis was a firm proponent of care for creation. He was the first pope to embrace the scientific consensus about climate change and urged nations to reduce their carbon emissions in line with the 2015 Paris climate accord. "Pope Leo clearly will carry this pastoral and civil concern forward," Rev. Bruce Morrill, a Jesuit priest and expert on Catholic liturgy at Vanderbilt University in the U.S., told Reuters. "This new thematic Mass indicates the Church's recognition of the serious threats human-caused climate change is now fully realising," he said. The new Vatican rite comes two days after Catholic bishops from Asia, Africa and Latin America called on global governments to do more to address climate change, publishing a joint appeal that was the first of its kind. (Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Top China official says US defence chief ‘inciting conflict'
BEIJING: A senior Chinese official accused the United States defence chief on Thursday of 'inciting confrontation and conflict' after he urged American allies to bolster their militaries to counter Beijing. China and the United States last month said they had reached an understanding on a trade deal -- a truce after bruising tit-for-tat tariffs on each other's goods. But the two countries still disagree on issues ranging from technology and security to geopolitics, including the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as Beijing's territorial claims in Asia. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned that China is preparing to use military force to upend the balance of power in Asia and has urged American allies to achieve 'peace through strength'. On Thursday, Liu Jianchao, the head of the International Department of China's ruling Communist Party, said Hegseth's remarks constituted 'hegemonic thinking'. 'What he truly wants is force, not dialogue,' Liu told the World Peace Forum in Beijing. 'What he is inciting is confrontation and conflict, not peace and harmony,' he said. China and the United States have long been at odds over Beijing's expansive claims in the strategically crucial South China Sea, and its refusal to rule out using force to seize Taiwan, the self-governed island it claims as its own. 'The Chinese government has made it crystal clear that it will never back down on these issues,' Liu said. 'The Chinese people will do their utmost to strive for the prospect of peaceful reunification of the motherland, but we will never allow Taiwan independence,' he added. 'The United States must respect China's sovereignty on this issue.' – AFP
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
In California, fear of racial profiling grips Latino communities
SINCE immigration police raided his car wash near Los Angeles last month, Jose has been constantly watching the video feeds from his 11 surveillance cameras. The raid carried out by federal agents outraged the 25-year-old, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear that his business, which employs many undocumented Latin American migrants, will be targeted again. "It felt like racial profiling," he said while showing AFP footage of the operation in Downey, a suburb of Los Angeles. In the videos, immigration officers chase and capture two car wash workers with dark complexions. Meanwhile, a lighter-skinned colleague calmly got into his car and drove away without being stopped. The two men arrested have no criminal records, with one of them working at the car wash for nearly 20 years, Jose said. "Our 10 workers that day were undocumented, they could have arrested any one of them," he told AFP. Jose said he felt it was "not a coincidence" that the two arrested workers had darker skin than the others. A month after Los Angeles was rocked by protests against sweeping immigration raids carried out by the administration of Republican President Donald Trump, the second-largest US city has returned to calm even as raids continue in the region. In Montebello, near Downey, a raid on an auto body shop sparked criticism against aggressive immigration officers. Witness videos showed an employee being pushed against a gate. He shouted "I'm American, bro!" before being released. "I believe that they are racially profiling people, which is unconstitutional. They are almost just driving around looking for people who look Mexican," said Mario Trujillo, a Downey councilman who recorded about 15 raids in June. The Trump administration has emphatically rejected the accusation. "Any claims that individuals have been 'targeted' by law enforcement because of their skin colour are disgusting and categorically FALSE," said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security. "We know who we are targeting ahead of time," she said, adding that agents were working "to get the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens off of America's streets." Preliminary figures from last month's arrests appear to contradict her statement. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) figures obtained by the Deportation Data Project, which collects US immigration enforcement data, 722 migrants were arrested in Los Angeles and the surrounding area from June 1 to 10. An analysis by the Los Angeles Times showed that 69 per cent of those arrested had no criminal convictions, and 58 per cent had never been charged with a crime. "This administration lied to us. They're not targeting criminals. They're going for people walking on the street, workers that look undocumented, Latino," Trujillo said. "That's why people are getting mad." Six Republican California state senators sent a letter to Trump last week, expressing concern over "raids targeting violent criminals, which have resulted in non-criminal migrants being swept up as well." "ICE raids are not only targeting undocumented workers, but also creating widespread fear among other employees, including those with legal immigration status. "This fear is driving vital workers out of critical industries," the letter said. In Downey, several Latin American migrants told AFP they now carry their immigration documents when they go out, for fear of arrest because of their appearance. "Permanent residents like us are not safe either," said a 23-year-old Mexican worker at another car wash, despite her having permission to be in the country.
