A picture showing priests and cardinals gathered around a Satanic-like figure in a black mass is circulating on social media, shared in various contexts.

Rome

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An artificial intelligence-generated image depicting a scene of alleged devil worship involving priests and cardinals has been gaining traction on social media platforms. The image portrays figures dressed in religious attire appearing to worship a statue of Baphomet, a figure commonly associated with pagan and Satanic symbolism. Despite the intricate details at first glance, evidence suggests the image is digitally created. Clues such as distorted and missing facial features, poorly rendered hands, and unrealistic configurations in the clothing and positions of figures signify AI involvement.

The viral image has been used and shared in various online contexts, sometimes accompanied by captions claiming it shows Vatican officials engaging in Satanism. In other cases, it serves as a visual thumbnail for YouTube content aiming to reveal supposed secrets of the Holy See. Over the years, such images have been repurposed for similar claims, often playing into pre-existing conspiracy theories targeting the Catholic Church.

A reverse image search reveals that this digital artwork has circulated for several years, sometimes cited in fake news narratives. These fabrications frequently align with long-standing conspiracy theories that attempt to depict the Vatican as a covert satanic institution. Such anti-Catholic claims have persisted for centuries, reflecting a historical pattern of misinformation directed towards the Vatican.



AI-generated image of Vatican 'devil worship' goes viral

AI-generated image of Vatican devil worship goes viral. A picture showing priests and cardinals gathered around a satanic-like figure in a black mass is circulating on social media, shared in various contexts. It shows men dressed in religious clothing apparently worshipping a statue of Baphomet, a pagan half-man, half-goat figure often associated with Satanism. Sometimes the image is shared on social media with captions alleging that it shows Vatican figures worshipping the devil, while at other times it's shared as a thumbnail for YouTube videos claiming to reveal secrets about the Holy See. The claims, and even the picture itself, might seem dramatic and outlandish, and that's because they are. A closer inspection shows that the image has clearly been AI-generated. While the image might look intricate at first glance, it contains many common clues indicating it's been digitally created. AI images typically struggle to generate hands, which can be seen here. The statue has missing, or seemingly cut-off, fingers. Another clue comes from people's faces. Again, AI isn't very good at generating facial features, which explains why the figures in this image don't have any, or if they do, they're distorted. The priests on either side of the altar have oddly-shaped faces, and the crowds at the back have smudged features and hollowed-out eyes. The raiment of each figure also looks odd. The robes of the central cardinal appear to blend into the altar, for example, while others have missing arms or are standing in impossible positions. A reverse image search of the picture shows that its use goes back several years, and is often used to supposedly reveal secrets about the Vatican. Fake news targeting the Catholic Church is nothing new, and often centers on conspiracy theories. In fact, anti-Catholic sentiment and false claims that the Vatican is secretly a satanic organization goes back hundreds of years. For more fact-checks, take a look at Euronews.com.

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