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Donald Trump says God “saved him to make America great again.” However, the best rebuttal of his presidency yet came from a priest—the Episcopal bishop of Washington.
The Rev. Marian Boddy's sermon Tuesday went where business leaders and even Democratic politicians struggled to go. As Trump sat a few feet away from the congregation, she asked him to show mercy to gays, lesbians, transgender people and immigrants who are “afraid” of his policies.
“Our God teaches us that we must be merciful to the stranger, because we were all strangers in this land,” Budd said during the Mass. This was not a passing rebuke of Trumpism; It was an eloquent 15-minute argument for a different policy.
Trump sat there, fidgeting and then getting angry in the National Cathedral. His deputy, J.D. Vance, a Catholic, objected in whispers to his wife. Maybe they weren't expecting that. Because at the inauguration the day before, they were received in a completely different religious way.
Preachers described Trump's return as a “miracle.” One pastor, Lorenzo Sewell, cited Martin Luther King's “I Have a Dream” speech in his honor.
In 2023, the charismatic Sewell was banned from his Detroit church because its constitution had changed and he was able to disenfranchise lay members. Shortly after the launch, he launched a cryptocurrency, telling X users: “I want you to go buy the official Lorenzo Sewell coin.” The price of the currency quickly fell by more than 90 percent.
Who represents Trump's Christian outlook? Is it Sewell with his Trump supporters? Pro-prosperity Talking about self-reliance, or the liberal Buddy who wants to speak on behalf of the marginalized? If Christianity is able to understand both outcomes, will it be of much use in understanding and confronting Trump?
Budde supported her title with references in the Bible. She aligns with Pope Francis, who has criticized Trump's plans for mass deportation of immigrants as a “disgrace.”
In contrast, pro-Trump spirituality often seems to rely on taking words out of context. Sewell stripped King's dream of its intended meaning. (As for Sewell's speech, let me say: “Free at last” is not meant to sum up what the audience feels when you stop speaking.)
Or take the confusion between Christianity and growth. Another conservative speaker at the inauguration, Rabbi Ari Berman, noted that George Washington described faith and morals as indispensable to “American prosperity.” In fact, Washington said it was necessary for “political prosperity.” The context, in 1796, was a call for national unity and a warning against distrust of “the absolute power of the individual.” Trump would have fidgeted during this speech, too.
But pro-Trump pastors are accepted as a valid part of the church as any other. And the seats are with the president as well. According to Michael Emerson, a scholar of religion, devout Christians are now largely Republicans, because liberal Protestants and Catholics have disproportionately stopped going to church.
Last year, Trump won about 60% of the Christian vote and more than 80% of the white evangelical vote. He paid off a porn star, vowed to veto any federal abortion ban, and apparently didn't lay his hand on a Bible at the inauguration. But some white evangelicals see him as a useful vessel, someone who will allow them to guide the conversation.
Ironically, Trump, after mentioning God several times in his inaugural address, complained that Buddy's sermon mixed politics and religion. The one thing Sewell and Buddy agree on is that you can't keep politics out of Christianity. If the church simply decides to bless whoever is in power, it will end up compromising.
The question becomes: Does religion stem from politics? Are Trump's supporters simply adjusting their faith to suit their preferred policies, while his opponents do the opposite? The answer is probably: often, but not always. There is certainly no point in listening to a preacher if you don't think he will ever change your mind.
“When we know what the truth is, we have to tell the truth even when it costs us, especially when it costs us,” Boddy said. Her accomplishment should not be measured by the number of people who attend her next service. This should be measured by the number of other people who feel a duty to speak out against what they know is wrong.
