Madonna has never been shy about challenging the Catholic Church, and at times it seemed her art thrived on the controversies and jabs she directed at the Church, alongside the criticism that the Pope and his followers aimed at her.
This past weekend, she opened yet another front, posting AI-generated images to her Instagram stories, featuring her standing next to Pope Francis, who appears to be getting close and sending flirtatious gestures.
Alongside the images, she wrote, “Feels good to be seen” and “It feels good to be seen.” Naturally, followers couldn’t help but react. One commenter asked, “Why is she doing this?” seemingly unaware of the singer's provocative side. Another reprimanded her, saying, “It’s unethical and wrong,” while a third wondered, “What’s wrong with her?” Someone else argued, “AI has gone too far,” as if Madonna’s images were the reason artificial intelligence became a controversial topic. “She’s desperate to stay relevant,” one unimpressed user claimed.
Others took the images more lightly, with one joking, “Finally, she found a friend her age,” and another writing, “Madonna the naughty one.” One follower drew the obvious conclusion: “Madonna wants to do it with the Pope?!”
As mentioned, Madonna’s conflict with the Church, despite identifying as Catholic, began early in her career. Over the years, she’s angered several popes. The popes may change, but Madonna remains unchanged. The music video for “Like A Prayer,” which featured a Black man portraying Jesus, sparked a huge scandal, costing her an endorsement deal with Pepsi for her world tour. Pope John Paul II called on her fans to boycott her concerts, and during the tour, Italian authorities threatened to arrest her due to her provocative onstage actions (she wasn’t arrested, and knowing Madonna, she likely regretted that).
In 2006, she angered the Vatican again during her Confessions Tour when she performed while bound to a giant cross. Italian Archbishop Arcangelo Tonini expressed his outrage, speaking on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI, saying, “This time, the line has really been crossed. The performance is a disgrace to faith and a sacrilege.”
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In 2015, she joked in an interview that she and the Pope were both in New York at the same time: “He’s following me. Either he’s copying me, or he’s secretly in love with me.” She added, “I’ve been excommunicated from the Catholic Church three times. That proves the Vatican really cares.”
In May 2022, she took things a step further, tweeting at the Pope: “I’m a good Catholic, I swear! I mean, I don’t swear. It’s been decades since my last confession. Is there any chance we could meet one day and talk about some important issues? I’ve been excommunicated from the Church three times, and I don’t think it’s fair. Yours, Madonna.” Her request likely went unanswered.
Last year, she sent him a possible jab, a possible tribute, when she was in Italy and wore a shirt with a cartoon image of the Pope with wings on his back. The designers of the shirt, Will Kowal and Abel Capeda Luca, said it was a reference to a famous Madonna quote: “I want to see the Pope wear my shirt.”