Recent Saturday Night Live sketch combined religious imagery and political parody

A recent Saturday Night Live sketch that aired on April 12, featured a parody combining biblical imagery with political satire. The sketch opened with Mikey Day portraying Jesus Christ in the temple, reenacting the scene of driving out money changers. He was joined by cast members Kenan Thompson, Andrew Dismukes, Sarah Sherman, Ego Nwodim, Emil Wakim, Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow, and Jane Wickline, who played Jesus' disciples.

Shortly after the scene began, James Austin Johnson entered as Donald Trump. The character addressed the crowd and began making comparisons between himself and Jesus. Johnson said,

"Remind you of anyone?"

"Wow, I also got rid of money last week, but instead of one temple, I did a whole country. Maybe even the globe. The money is gone."

---

Saturday Night Live sketch featured religious and political elements

The Saturday Night Live segment included several lines from Johnson as Trump that referenced the economy, faith, and Easter.

"Hi, it's me, your favorite president, Donald Jesus Trump," Johnson said. "Comparing myself to the son of God once again. You know, many people are even calling me the Messiah because of the mess I uh made out of the economy."

The sketch also touched on topics such as the stock market and U.S. tariff policies:

"But now everything is back how it was, minus a few trillion dollars,"

Johnson as Trump added:

"A historic transfer of wealth from the middle classes to my buddies. Oh well."

He added,

"It’s true, the stock market did a Jesus. It died, then on the third day, it was risen, and on the fourth day, it died again, possibly never to return, just like Jesus."

The parody incorporated references to Easter, Easter egg shopping, and church attendance, with Johnson's Trump-character delivering additional commentary in the sketch.

---

Religious references, Trump, Bible mentioned in sketch

The parody closed with Johnson’s character continuing the blend of religious and political language:

"But in the holiest of seasons, Easter, let us remember the lesson that Mr. Jesus taught us when he went buck wild on those money changers: We must never mix religion with commerce,"

He ended the segment with a reference to a fictional product:

"You can read all about that in my Trump Bible, now made in America, so it costs $1,300, and it falls apart even faster,"

The sketch continued Saturday Night Live’s pattern of using high-profile political figures as subjects of satire, including the recurring Trump impersonation by Johnson that has appeared in past episodes.

---

Response to the Saturday Night Live parody

Following the broadcast, CEO Branding Expert, the author of Firestarter and the founder of a PR News Top 100 Agency, shared a reaction to the sketch on X (formerly Twitter), questioning its appropriateness:

"SNL chose to mock Easter and Jesus cleansing the Temple while mixing in its normal Trump-style skit. Politics mixed with a sacred moment for millions is a toxic combo,"

He also posed a broader question to his followers, asking,

"Should some things be off limits in comedy?" and described the segment as "Tacky. Inappropriate. And disrespectful."

The comments came as part of broader online discussion surrounding the sketch, which included conversations about the use of religious content in comedy, particularly in holiday-themed programming.

---

Saturday Night Live is a long-running sketch comedy series. It is known for using satire and impersonations to comment on current events. The show airs weekly on NBC and is produced by Broadway Video in association with Universal Television.