That’s not how anyone expected the National Prayer Service to go.
President Donald Trump had quite the busy day yesterday as he was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. He wasted no time once he was in office, signing over 25 executive orders on his first day. For reference, during Trump’s first term, he had signed four executive orders during his first week as the president.
Needless to say, Donald Trump has gotten back into the swing of things fairly quickly. The 45th/47th president continued his duties today as he attended the National Prayer Service at the Washington National Cathedral. Trump, along with his wife Melania and Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife Usha, were sitting in the front row during the service in the church that has hosted over 10 inaugural prayer services.
Though after what happened today, the National Prayer Service might find a new home the next time around. That’s because Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde blindsided the church service by blending politics with religion. At one point, she directly spoke to President Donald Trump while it was her time to speak and said this:
“In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared. There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and independent families, some who fear for their lives.
And the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor and poultry farms and meat packing 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.”
There’s even more to the bishop’s “sermon,” but I’ll let you listen to the rest of the heresy on your own time.
Make sure to keep an eye on the reactions of Donald Trump and J.D. Vance… they become living memes as they try to comprehend the church service being overtaken by politics. JD looked like he was on the verge of bursting out in laughter at any second.
JUST IN: Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde asks Trump to protect 'gay, lesbian, tr*nsgender children, illegal immigrants,' and 'people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings' during a prayer service at the National Cathedral
“I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our… pic.twitter.com/tTu5gdbI9p
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) January 21, 2025
All I’ll say is that was neither the time nor the place for something like that.
After the National Prayer Service concluded, Donald Trump was stopped by the media and asked how he thought the sermon went. To be honest, it was a pretty mundane response from Trump considering what happened:
“Not too exciting, was it? I didn’t think it was a good service, no. Thank you very much. They could do much better.”
President Trump following National Prayer Service: "Not too exciting, was it. I didn't think it was a good service. No…They can do much better." pic.twitter.com/iNpWGKaXhN
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 21, 2025
Love that he said, “Thank you very much” then thought of something else that would be good to say. President Donald Trump is officially back.
And as you might imagine, the conversation on social media revolving around the politicized sermon has left many wondering why or how Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde was given the opportunity to speak – considering how openly she’s spoken against Trump in the past:
2020 Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde: "I've given up speaking to Pres. Trump. We need to replace President Trump." pic.twitter.com/7AKXpKZJCC
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) January 21, 2025
There were also a lot of people just pointing out how comical the reactions were from the President and the Vice President (and their wives):
She may need to find a new profession after that one.
— Mike Ray (@MikeRay_22) January 21, 2025
The looks on Trump and Vance’s face are great.
Imagine if they got up and left.
— Some Internet Guy 🇺🇸 (@SomInternetGuy) January 21, 2025
Why make the service political…
— Spicy Cholent 🎗️🇺🇸 🇮🇱 (@spicycholent) January 21, 2025
The look on JD’s face is priceless.
— RedVirgo🔥Stacy 🔥 (@stacy_redvirgo) January 21, 2025
I think their faces say it all pic.twitter.com/wOGPMg8H1H
— Revolutionary Frog (@John_Hopcock) January 21, 2025
