Trump Doesn’t Actually Think He’s the Messiah, or Does He?*
Published in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
(Germany) on 13 April 2026
by Michael Hanfeld (link to
original)
Donald Trump attacked the pope while portraying himself as our Lord Jesus Christ. The U.S. president’s political camp chimed in with criticizing the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, until cries of blasphemy arose and no one saw the funny side. Trump promptly deleted his embarrassing self-portrait. All anyone could do was pray.
Not content with firing off his latest tirade against Pope Leo XIV, Donald Trump also took to his Truth Social platform to remind the world just how he sees himself: as the savior and son of God bringing salvation to humanity.
The Laying on of Healing Hands
It’s the way we saw him depicted in the AI-generated image Trump posted after issuing a volley of insults about the pope. In it, the U.S. president appears to be healing a sick man by laying his hands on his head, while men and women look on in awe, and bald eagles and U.S. fighter jets hover in the sky overhead. The five shadowy figures emerging from the firmament are inevitably reminiscent of the (Four) Horsemen of the Apocalypse from the New Testament's "Book of Revelation."
This symbolism seems apt in light of Trump’s threat to obliterate “a whole civilization” in Iran. A very similar version of the image — with five U.S. servicemen in the sky — was circulated in early February by ultra-conservative commentator Nick Adams, recently appointed by Trump as special envoy for U.S. tourism.
Trump’s iconography has drawn protests even from within his own MAGA ranks. Renegade Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene found the Christ-like image to be “more than blasphemy. It’s an Antichrist spirit.” Ultra-conservative influencer Milo Yiannopoulus expressed his view that, we [Americans have for too long] tolerated this kind of meme against our better judgment because he promised to "save" America and only when it was clear he didn’t actually think he was the Messiah. Yet even on that point, one can never be sure with Trump.
After the uproar, Trump could not have backed away from his post in a more ridiculous fashion. “I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor, and had to do with the Red Cross, as a Red Cross worker there, which we support,” Trump told reporters outside the Oval Office. The U.S. president then hedged before deleting the image from his account, “Only the fake news could come up with that one,” he continued — the crazy idea he might regard himself as the Messiah. That said, there is no Red Cross doctor who could help him treat that particular problem.
*Editor's note: This article is available in its original language with a paid subscription.
Not content with firing off his latest tirade against Pope Leo XIV, Donald Trump also took to his Truth Social platform to remind the world just how he sees himself: as the savior and son of God bringing salvation to humanity.
The Laying on of Healing Hands
It’s the way we saw him depicted in the AI-generated image Trump posted after issuing a volley of insults about the pope. In it, the U.S. president appears to be healing a sick man by laying his hands on his head, while men and women look on in awe, and bald eagles and U.S. fighter jets hover in the sky overhead. The five shadowy figures emerging from the firmament are inevitably reminiscent of the (Four) Horsemen of the Apocalypse from the New Testament's "Book of Revelation."
This symbolism seems apt in light of Trump’s threat to obliterate “a whole civilization” in Iran. A very similar version of the image — with five U.S. servicemen in the sky — was circulated in early February by ultra-conservative commentator Nick Adams, recently appointed by Trump as special envoy for U.S. tourism.
Trump’s iconography has drawn protests even from within his own MAGA ranks. Renegade Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene found the Christ-like image to be “more than blasphemy. It’s an Antichrist spirit.” Ultra-conservative influencer Milo Yiannopoulus expressed his view that, we [Americans have for too long] tolerated this kind of meme against our better judgment because he promised to "save" America and only when it was clear he didn’t actually think he was the Messiah. Yet even on that point, one can never be sure with Trump.
After the uproar, Trump could not have backed away from his post in a more ridiculous fashion. “I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor, and had to do with the Red Cross, as a Red Cross worker there, which we support,” Trump told reporters outside the Oval Office. The U.S. president then hedged before deleting the image from his account, “Only the fake news could come up with that one,” he continued — the crazy idea he might regard himself as the Messiah. That said, there is no Red Cross doctor who could help him treat that particular problem.
*Editor's note: This article is available in its original language with a paid subscription.
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