When Bishop Calls On Trump To "Have Mercy" On LGBTQ+, Migrants

Washington DC, US: During an inaugural prayer service sermon, the Right Rev. Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, asked Donald Trump to “have mercy upon” the LGBTQ+ community and undocumented migrant workers, which are being targeted by the Trump administration.

Hinting at Trump’s belief that he was saved by God from assassination, the Bishop said , “You have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now”.

Trump, who was seen sitting stone-faced during the sermon, told reporters that the sermon was “not too exciting”. “I didn’t think it was a good service, no…They could do much better”, Trump said.

“I didn’t think it was a good service, no…They could do much better”, Trump said.

Responding to this, Trump called the Bishop ‘nasty Trump hater’. Taking to his social media account Truth Social, Trump said Budde is a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater”. The Republican also added that Budde failed to mention “the large number of illegal migrants that came into our country and killed people”. He slammed the sermon as “boring and uninspiring”.

Budde also said that they gathered “to pray for unity as a people and a nation — not for agreement, political or otherwise — but for the kind of unity that fosters community across diversity and division”. “Unity is not partisan”, she further added.

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The sermon was part of a post-inauguration day tradition hosted by the Washington national cathedral. The interfaith prayer service was attended by presidents and vice presidents at the start of their term. The prayer took a political turn when Budde deliver the homily.

Budde was praised by netizens for the “bold” move in calling out Trump’s action of signing off executive orders rolling back dozens of directive of Biden administration that ensured support and ensured lack of discrimination against gay and transgender people. One of the executive signed by Trump directed the federal government to recognize only “two sexes – male and female” while his immigration directives moved to dismantle birthright citizenship, send troops to the southern border and suspend the US refugee admissions program.

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Asking Trump to have compassion, Budde said, “There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in both Democratic, Republican and independent families who fear for their lives”.

Speaking of the immigrants, who “pick our crops”, and “work the night shift in hospitals”, the Bishop said, “The vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes, and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches, mosques and synagogues, gurdwara and temples”.

She added that, “Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were once strangers in this land”.