Several Catholic bishops who were filmed praying over US President Donald Trump at the White House have said they felt manipulated by administration officials after a video of the gathering was shared on social media.
The video, recorded on Oct 22 and showing 12 Catholic bishops praying over Trump in the Oval Office, drew criticism for appearing to endorse the president and his policies less than two weeks before the US midterm elections.
A spokesperson for retired Archbishop Joseph Naumann, formerly head of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, said the bishops had been assured that no photographs would be made public.
‘The bishops were assured that no photographs would be made public. They came to have a discussion on important policy matters,’ the spokesperson told Religion News Service on Monday.
Bishops say prayer was not a political endorsement
Denver Archbishop James Golka, who was seen praying in the video, defended the gathering in an interview with his archdiocesan newspaper, saying the prayer was not an endorsement of Trump.
‘We pray for people. We bless people who need blessing. And we all need blessing, every single one of us. That’s what we do,’ Golka said.
He also accused some people of using the incident to sow division, adding that the public should look beyond headlines to understand the full truth.
Milwaukee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob, however, issued a public apology on Sunday, saying he felt deep sadness over the pain caused and the way the prayer had been used.
In a letter titled ‘A Public Apology’, Grob said the bishops had spent about 90 minutes meeting White House officials at a gathering he said was organised by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. However, a Heritage Foundation spokesperson denied to Religion News Service that the organisation had arranged the meeting.
Grob said the bishops were subsequently led into the Oval Office, where they were greeted by Trump and directed to stand behind him and pray. He said the group did not know a video was being recorded.
‘We came in good faith to try to work for the betterment of our fellow human beings, to ease their suffering, to build up the common good, and to pray with a president, not to pose for a political photo opportunity to benefit the few,’ Grob wrote.
‘We should never have been put in that position by the White House. I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them.’
Bishops express concern over political use of meeting
The experience was also echoed by Bishop James Wall of Gallup, New Mexico. His spokesperson, Suzanne Hammons, said Grob’s statement reflected Wall’s experience and that he had not known a video was being taken.
Hammons said most of the visit had been devoted to discussions with administration officials on immigration and human dignity. Wall remained willing to meet politicians to discuss such issues and pray that they would lead with integrity rather than division and harm.
The White House did not directly address the bishops’ claims that they had been manipulated. Instead, spokesperson Taylor Rogers said Trump had been the greatest president for Catholic Americans, citing the administration’s opposition to gender-affirming care for transgender children and Trump’s pardons of activists convicted of blocking abortion clinic entrances.
The bishops’ meeting with White House officials lasted three hours, according to Naumann’s office, and included Jennifer Korn, director of the White House Faith Office; Paula White-Cain, a senior adviser to Trump; and Vince Haley, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Topics discussed included immigration enforcement, religious worker visas, the exploitation of poor people, abortion medication regulation, in vitro fertilisation (IVF), infertility treatment, child protection from pornography, tax credits for private education and religious freedom.
Naumann’s office said the retired archbishop appreciated the time officials devoted to the bishops’ concerns. It added that he had challenged the administration on some policy issues, including IVF, which involves the destruction or freezing of human embryos. He advocated greater support for treatments addressing the underlying causes of infertility.
Current Kansas City Archbishop Shawn McKnight clarified that Naumann had attended the White House meeting in his personal capacity and did not represent him or the archdiocese.
Des Moines Bishop William Joensen, who also took part in the prayer, said many aspects of the current administration were at odds with Catholic faith. He stressed that the visit was never intended to endorse any political party or candidate.
Joensen also cited Matthew 10:16, in which Jesus tells his followers to be ‘shrewd as serpents and simple as doves’, saying he should have been more cautious about those who exploited the meeting for partisan political purposes.
Representatives of several other bishops who attended the gathering did not respond to requests for comment from Religion News Service.
