President Donald Trump drew criticism from many Christians, including both Catholics and Protestants, after posting an image in April that depicted himself as Jesus Christ. Vice President JD Vance, who converted to Catholicism, defended Trump during a late-August interview with evangelical podcaster Bryce Crawford, though Crawford did not back away from calling the image deeply offensive.

Crawford told Vance, "I'm a Christian, I saw the photo — it made me upset. I'm not going to lie, it made me upset."

Vance did not defend the image itself, but he avoided directly criticizing the president.

"I hear you, and I know the president didn't mean any offense," the Hillbilly Elegy author told Crawford. "Obviously, he loves Christians, and politically, has done a lot of good for religious liberty, and certainly didn't mean anything by it. I'm biased because I see this from the inside. So, it's like, 'Did Donald Trump mean to post a meme of himself as God?' No."

Trump posted the image of himself as Jesus Christ as part of a sharp online attack on Pope Leo XIV, who has publicly criticized the U.S. president on immigration and other issues. The episode landed in the middle of an already tense relationship between Trump and some religious conservatives, for whom imagery that blends political power and religious symbolism can be especially sensitive. After the image prompted a strong backlash, Trump removed it and said, "I thought it was me as a doctor."

Crawford rejected that explanation, telling Vance, "I don't know how he thought he was a doctor in the photo. He was (wearing) a white robe with a red sash on it, you know — and that makes me upset as a Christian."

He added that he "did appreciate" Trump taking the image down.

Vance continued to defend Trump, saying the president never intended to offend Christians. The vice president said Trump is too busy to spend much time on social media and that "people will bring him stuff," adding that the image was an example of that.

Crawford responded, "Sometimes, he'll like chuckle at it — and sometimes, if he really thinks it's funny, he'll have somebody post it. And that's exactly what happened here. He did not mean to like, mock or mimic God. That's just not who he is."

Vance was a strong critic of Trump during the 2016 U.S. presidential election, but he later became a prominent MAGA ally and a vocal supporter of Trump’s policies during his years in the U.S. Senate. The exchange also underscored how Trump’s relationship with religious voters remains a recurring political issue, especially when questions about faith, symbolism, and public conduct overlap in the national spotlight.