Bishop at Inaugural Mass Calls on Trump to ‘Have Mercy’ on LGBTQ Children, Immigrants

The bishop, leading the inaugural prayer service on Tuesday, urged President Donald Trump to “be merciful” to his constituents, specifically naming LGBTQ people and immigrants.

The sermon by the Right Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, was part of a larger interfaith ceremony following the dedication at the Washington National Cathedral. Trump sat in the front row with First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance during the service, a tradition carried out by presidents of both parties.

“In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy on the people of our country who are afraid now,” said Budde, who looked directly at the president. “There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican and independent families. Some who fear for their lives.”

She added: “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.”

When Budde finished his sermon, Trump leaned over to say something to Vance, who shook his head in response.

Later, as Trump walked through the White House colonnade with his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, reporters asked him what he thought of the sermon. He asked the group, “Do you like it? Think it’s exciting?” He then added that he “didn’t think it was a good service, no” and said they “could do a lot better.”

A spokesman for the Trump administration did not immediately return a request for further comment.

Budde’s remarks came a day after Trump was sworn in and signed about 100 executive actions, some of which included policies affecting LGBTQ people and immigrants.

Regarding LGBTQ people, Trump signed a sweeping executive order proclaims that the US government will only recognize two gendersmale and female, and another order end “radical and wasteful” diversity, equality and inclusion programmes within federal agencies.

The Trump administration also removed LGBTQ resources from government websites, including a page previously on the State Department website dedicated to promoting LGBTQ rights around the world.

On immigration, Trump signed a flurry of executive actions, including ones that sought to end birthright citizenship, halt all refugee admissions and send the military to the southern border.

Several of Trump’s orders are likely to be the subject of extensive legal battles. A coalition of more than a dozen Democratic attorneys general sued Tuesday to block the birthright citizenship executive order, which critics have said violates the 14th Amendment to the Constitution.

The Trump administration also ended use of a government app, CBP One, used by migrants to submit their information and schedule appointments at Southwest border ports of entry, according to a statement posted on the Customs and Border Protection website. It is unclear whether that change will be permanent.

Tuesday’s sermon was not the first time Budde, the bishop of the Diocese of Washington, has criticized Trump. In June 2020, she wrote a op-ed for The New York Times criticizing the then-president for clearing Lafayette Square, near the White House, amid the George Floyd protests and then posing for photos on the grounds of the nearby St. John’s Church while holding a Bible in his hand.

“The God I serve is on the side of justice. Jesus calls his followers to imitate his example of sacrificial love and to build what he called the kingdom of God on earth,” she wrote in the op-ed. “What would Jesus’ sacrificial love look like now?”