As he basked in the glitz of the Republican National Convention's closing night, Donald Trump's bandaged ear served as a vivid reminder of his uncanny ability to turn adversity into triumph.

Multiple speakers in Milwaukee have suggested it was divine intervention that had saved him from assassination at the hands of a gunman in Pennsylvania last week, and the crowd roared as Trump declared: "I had God on my side."

It was a night full of religious invocations, and TV evangelist Franklin Graham, one of the warm-up acts, set the tone by incorporating Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan into a prayer.

Trump himself projected an aura that was more grandfatherly than messianic.

"Together, we will launch a new era of safety, prosperity and freedom for citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed," he vowed.

"The discord and division in our society must be healed."

If the weekend shooting in Pennsylvania changed anything about the public image of Trump it was to humanize him.

Many had envisaged a full-throttle response from the rambunctious........

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