Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, has defended her decision to deliver a bold and compassionate sermon directly addressing Trump during a prayer service at Washington’s National Cathedral on Tuesday. Speaking to NPR’s All Things Considered on Wednesday, Budde stood by her remarks and made it clear she has no regrets.
“I don’t hate the president, and I pray for him,” Budde said. “I don’t feel there’s a need to apologize for a request for mercy.”
During the 15-minute sermon, Budde appealed directly to Trump, who was seated in the front row alongside Vice President J.D. Vance, calling on him to show compassion and empathy toward the country’s most vulnerable communities. “Millions have put their trust in you,” she said. “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.”
Budde’s sermon came just one day after Trump issued a series of executive orders targeting marginalized communities. These included an order rejecting transgender identity as a “false claim” and another seeking to end birthright citizenship, which has already sparked legal challenges.
In her sermon, Budde spoke about the fears her congregants and others across the country are facing under Trump’s policies. “There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families, some who fear for their lives,” Budde said. “The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals — 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.”
Trump, however, was quick to respond. In a post on Truth Social, he criticized Budde, calling her a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater” and accusing her of bringing “her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way.” Trump went on to describe her sermon as “nasty in tone” and claimed it was “not compelling or smart.”
Despite the backlash, Budde told NPR she remains steadfast in her message. She explained that her remarks were sincere and rooted in her faith, aimed at urging the president to embrace the values of unity and compassion in a divided country. “I decided to ask him as gently as I could to have mercy,” Budde said, emphasizing the danger of labeling immigrants or transgender individuals in harmful, sweeping terms.
“I decided to make an appeal to the president,” she said. “To be united as a country with so many riches of diversity, we need mercy. We need compassion. We need empathy.”
Budde’s direct approach sparked both praise and criticism. Some commended her courage for addressing Trump directly in such a high-profile setting, while others, including a Republican congressman, accused her of politicizing the prayer service. One congressman even suggested Budde, an American-born citizen, should be “added to the deportation list.”
Still, Budde told NPR that she remains focused on advocating for vulnerable groups and challenging rhetoric that fosters fear and division. “I won’t apologize for asking for mercy,” she reiterated.
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