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Madonna, Pope Francis Taylor Hill/FilmMagic; Franco Orilla/Getty Images
Madonna was criticized for sharing an AI photo of herself and Pope Francis.
On Friday, December 13, Madonna (66) shared what appeared to be a picture of the Pope (87) hugging the pop icon in her Instagram Story. The image, which has since expired, read: “It’s good to be seen.” Madonna also tagged the Instagram account Rick Dickwho made the picture.
Dick also posted a picture of himself account with the inscription “MA.I.DONNA AND THE POPE. Thank you @madonna ❤🔥.”
The image later caused controversy on the Internet.
Since the release of her debut album in 1983, Madonna has rarely been out of the public eye — and she’s never stopped delivering floor-filling pop hits. Born in Bay City, Michigan in 1958, Madonna — whose full name is Madonna Louise Ciccone — began dancing as a child after convincing her father to let her learn (…)
“This is ridiculously disrespectful,” one social media user wrote in the comments section, while others found it “so weird” and “so creepy.”
Neither Madonna, Dick, nor the Vatican have publicly addressed the backlash; Us Weekly requested comment. The AI artist, however, shared screenshots of media coverage of the controversy via Instagram Stories on Saturday, December 14.
Madonna’s name, songs like “Like a Prayer” and her tours have previously been criticized by Catholic figures for allegedly including religious allegories. Her 1990 Blonde Ambition the tour was even boycotted by the pope at the time, Pope John Paul II.
“I was raised with a Catholic education. During the press conference, while I was busy promoting In bed with Madonna“I was shocked to see that the Church attacked me because it could not understand how much my work was trying to produce something good,” Madonna said. Vanity Fair Italia 2023. “I immediately realized that the problem was them, not me.” The problem was with them because they did not understand that my work as an artist brings people together, gives them freedom of expression, unity. It was a mirror of Jesus’ teaching. Whoever attacked me was just a hypocrite.”
Madonna’s celebration tour, which ended May 4, is back in the news after a concertgoer filed a lawsuit alleging the show forced him to watch what he called sexually explicit content. In court documents obtained by Entertainment Weekly, concert-goer Justin Lipeles alleged that the audience was exposed to “pornography without warning,” including “topless women on (…)
Now, Madonna identifies herself as spiritual.
“I think it’s important to have a pattern of ritual and spiritual life.” But I also think that a religion without understanding, without knowledge, without curiosity and inclusiveness cannot be considered a religion,” she told the agency. “Religion is not adherence to an exclusive or extremist group.” Religion is respect for other religions. Religion encourages people to understand what they believe and to study what they believe instead of adhering to a dogma that without study and without understanding would be empty and sterile.
Madonna added: “My relationship with religion today? I nurture my spiritual practices. Practices that work for me may not necessarily work for everyone. I think everyone should do it because I think it’s important to pray and have a connection with the soul, with spiritual power, call it what you want. I think it’s important because I believe in the idea of something bigger, something higher, something metaphysical that is beyond us, but that holds us all together.
