In recent years, tradition holds for newly inaugurated U.S. presidents to attend an interfaith prayer service hosted at the Episcopal Church's Washington National Cathedral. The second inauguration of President Donald Trump was no exception.
On Jan. 21, 2025, Trump and Vice President JD Vance attended the service with their families. After Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde's sermon, multiple news outlets reported that Trump had asked for an apology from the bishop and the Episcopal Church for the comments she delivered. Snopes readers wrote in asking if that was true.
In short, it was. In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, written after the service, Trump called Budde a "Radical Left hard line Trump hater" who was "nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart." He called the service "boring and uninspiring" and concluded by saying that the Episcopal Church and Budde "owe the public an apology!"
(Truth Social user @realDonaldTrump)
Other Republicans also criticized Budde, such as U.S. Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia (archived), who called for the bishop to be "added to the deportation list," referring to mass deportations for undocumented immigrants Trump promised during his campaign and began implementing on his first day in office.
In the conclusion of her sermon, Budde addressed the president directly. On his first day in office, Trump signed executive orders targeting transgender individuals and immigration. The bishop responded to those acts by asking Trump to "have mercy" for members of the LGBTQ+ community and for immigrants.
Here are her comments directed to the president:
Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. 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 now.
There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and Independent families, some who fear for their lives. And the people, the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in poultry farms and meat packing plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals. They, 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. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, gurdwaras and temples.
I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away. And that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land.
May God grant us the strength and courage to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love and walk humbly with each other and our God for the good of all people. Good of all people in this nation and the world. Amen.