Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 21, 2025 / 15:30 pm

At the interfaith prayer service held at Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday morning, an Episcopal bishop challenged President Donald Trump, urging him to “have mercy” on migrants and those who identify as members of the gay, lesbian, and transgender community.

“Let me make one final plea, Mr. President,” Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington said at the conclusion of her sermon.

“Millions have put their trust in you, and as you told the nation yesterday, 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,” Budde continued.

“There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families,” she said, “some who fear for their lives.”

In a tradition that has been in place since the inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, Trump and Vice President JD Vance attended the interfaith “Service of Prayer for the Nation” along with their families, Cabinet members, and other dignitaries.

Throughout her sermon, which lasted about 20 minutes, Budde underscored the importance of unity and the need to depart from “the culture of contempt that has become normalized in this country,” which she described as “worrisome.”

“As a country, we have gathered this morning to pray for unity as people and nation. Not for agreement, political or otherwise, but for the kind of unity that fosters community across diversity and divisions,” Budde told the assembled dignitaries.

Budde, the first woman to be elected to her position, currently serves as a spiritual leader for 86 congregations and 10 Episcopalian schools across Washington, D.C., and Maryland, according to the Episcopal diocese’s website. She is described as “an advocate and organizer in support of justice concerns, including racial equity, gun violence prevention, immigration reform, the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ persons, and the care of creation.”

In her sermon, Budde was at times openly critical of the president.

“Contempt fuels political campaigns and social media, and many profit from that,” she said, adding: “It’s a dangerous way to lead a country.”

Trump and Vance, who sat in the front row during the service, showed no reaction.

“And the people who pick our crops, clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants, and who work the night shifts in hospitals,” she continued, “they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals; they pay taxes and are good neighbors.”

“I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President,” Budde said, again addressing Trump directly, “on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away.” She also appealed to the president on behalf of migrants fleeing war zones and persecution in their home countries.

Other religious leaders, including those from Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Buddhist backgrounds offered prayers during the service, which was interposed with music performed by Christopher Macchio, the Cathedral Contemporary Ensemble, and the Cathedral Choir. There were no Catholic leaders among those offering prayers.

Notably, in the months leading up to the election, both the National Cathedral and St. John’s Episcopal Church announced they would be paring back their pre- and post-Inauguration Day services to center them on prayer, as Religion News Service reported. St. John’s removed the homily from its program, opting to center the event on morning prayer and Scripture, interspersed with music.

“While Episcopal in nature, the service will be intentionally accessible and open, with prayers aimed at speaking to all. It will be explicitly nonpartisan,” St. John’s Rev. Robert Fisher said in the report.

For its part, Washington National Cathedral announced in an October press release that it would be hosting services from Election Day through Inauguration Day “designed for quiet reflection, prayer, and spiritual support for the country.”

“Regardless of who the president is or whether he or she attends, the liturgy will center on the country,” Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, dean of Washington National Cathedral, said in the release.

“Whether voters choose Kamala Harris or Donald Trump, a large percentage of Americans will feel anxious, upset, or fearful,” he continued, adding: “We need to find a way to heal what divides us, and prayer is an important part of that healing process.”

The National Cathedral further noted at the time that a draft of the January service had already been composed and that it would “emphasize the need for healing and national unity” in addition to “underscor[ing] the values of reconciliation, shared purpose, and the work required to bring the nation together.”