(RNS) — From puffers to pride flags, religion took center stage more than a few times in 2023 — to mixed reviews. Here are RNS’ top picks for this year’s religion and pop culture clashes.Pope in a puffer
The AI image craze has not left anyone behind. Pope Francis was “photographed” in March sporting a chic long white puffer jacket and jeweled crucifix while taking a walk through the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square. The photo was a deepfake generated entirely by artificial intelligence software Midjourney. Nevertheless, the image of an extra-stylish pontiff fooled millions of social media users, leading to stress as AI gets harder to recognize. “No way am I surviving the future of technology,” tweeted celebrity Chrissy Teigen. In December, the pope issued a call in his annual message for the World Day of Peace for global regulation of AI.
“Jesus was a carpenter”
Former Disney Channel star Sabrina Carpenter stirred up some trouble with the Catholic Church in October after filming a music video for her hit song “Feather.” The video, released on Halloween, pictured the singer in a little black dress and veil dancing among coffins placed at the altar of the historic Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Brooklyn, New York. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn promptly issued a statement saying it was “appalled” by Carpenter’s use of the church and demoted the priest who signed off on the filming a few days later. In response to the controversy, Carpenter had this to say: “We got approval in advance. And Jesus was a carpenter.”
Sabrina Carpenter arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards, Sept. 12, 2023, in Newark, N.J. (Photo by Evan Agos …
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The AI image craze has not left anyone behind. Pope Francis was “photographed” in March sporting a chic long white puffer jacket and jeweled crucifix while taking a walk through the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square. The photo was a deepfake generated entirely by artificial intelligence software Midjourney. Nevertheless, the image of an extra-stylish pontiff fooled millions of social media users, leading to stress as AI gets harder to recognize. “No way am I surviving the future of technology,” tweeted celebrity Chrissy Teigen. In December, the pope issued a call in his annual message for the World Day of Peace for global regulation of AI.
“Jesus was a carpenter”
Former Disney Channel star Sabrina Carpenter stirred up some trouble with the Catholic Church in October after filming a music video for her hit song “Feather.” The video, released on Halloween, pictured the singer in a little black dress and veil dancing among coffins placed at the altar of the historic Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Brooklyn, New York. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn promptly issued a statement saying it was “appalled” by Carpenter’s use of the church and demoted the priest who signed off on the filming a few days later. In response to the controversy, Carpenter had this to say: “We got approval in advance. And Jesus was a carpenter.”
Sabrina Carpenter arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards, Sept. 12, 2023, in Newark, N.J. (Photo by Evan Agos …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]