The public apology from the bishops filmed praying with Trump

Rome. “The prayer may well have been sincere. The photo opportunity was purely political and will be used and manipulated by a president and an administration that have shown no restraint in bending reality to suit their own ends,” wrote the National Catholic Reporter, commenting on the prayer in the Oval Office involving twelve bishops. They stood at attention surrounding Donald Trump. It is a scene we have seen time and time again, and Trump is certainly not the first president to do so, but today, in the run-up to the mid-term elections, it is at the heart of the debate (more intellectual than popular, to be honest). 

The facts: on 22 October, the White House released a video showing twelve bishops praying for and with Trump in the Oval Office. All hell broke loose: much of the American Catholic press, which leans towards the Democrats, immediately criticised the bishops, questioning whether it was really appropriate, twelve days before the election, to take part in that scene. The White House did not hesitate before releasing the video: the opportunity was too good to miss. Are you telling us we have no regard for the Pope in Rome? That Catholics are against us? Here are twelve bishops – twelve, like the apostles – who are here praying with us. He immediately listed those present: full names, positions and cities of origin. Among them was the Archbishop of Denver, Monsignor James Golka, who has a distinctive feature: as well as leading a prominent diocese, he is one of the key appointments in the United States made by Leo XIV, having been appointed there last February. The fact that he is a ‘Leonian’ bishop was held against him, so much so that the day after the publication of the controversial video, Monsignor Golka sprinkled ashes on his head as if it were an early Lent: “I understand that many people have interpreted the video as a show of support; that was by no means my intention,” he told the Denver Catholic, adding that he was deeply saddened to see “that people have been hurt and that there are those who are deliberately exploiting this moment to fuel divisions”. The archbishop, as if he were standing before a panel of Iranian legal experts, had to provide every possible justification: he was there for other commitments; he was due to meet officials from the White House Office of Religious Affairs to discuss immigration, abortion, and religious and educational freedom. And then, yes, the greeting to the President. The Bishop of Milwaukee offered his “public apology”, explaining that he knew nothing about photographs or video recordings. He was there solely to discuss and pray. Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa, on the other hand, engaged in some soul-searching: “I wish I had been more prudent and less naive”. But who set this trap? According to another of the bishops present, Bishop Scott Bullock of Rapid City – who nevertheless recalled how St Paul, in his Letter to Timothy, says it is good to pray for those in authority – the US Conference of Catholic Bishops was not unaware of the event but had in no way been involved in planning it. At least that is how Chieko Noguchi, director of the Conference’s Office of Public Affairs, clarified the matter. Behind it all is the Heritage Foundation, which, through its ‘Project 2025’, aims to revolutionise the federal government and strengthen executive power: ‘It now has the image of a blessing bestowed by Catholic bishops, something it could never have imagined acquiring, even with unlimited financial resources,’ observed the National Catholic Reporter. After the prayer, Donald Trump described the twelve as “extraordinary people”, as if to say: see, the Catholics who matter aren’t against me? The leadership of the Bishops’ Conference was neither present nor did they comment. In recent months, and particularly following the President’s attacks on the Pope (whom he described as “weak on crime and terrible on foreign policy”), the rift between the White House and the Bishops’ Conference has widened. Immigration and the war against Iran are the areas where their positions are poles apart. The serious problem for Trump, beyond the bishops’ dissent, is that even among the Catholic electorate, disillusionment with him prevails. This is no minor matter for the President, who returned to the White House partly thanks to their vote.