Catholic Bishops Pray With Trump in Oval Office Meeting
A group of U.S. Catholic bishops met President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, praying with him and discussing religious freedom, school choice, and life policy. The meeting was organized by the White House Faith Office, not the bishops' conference.
A group of more than half a dozen U.S. Catholic bishops met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, where they prayed with him and discussed issues including religious freedom, school choice, and life policy. The meeting, organized by the White House Faith Office, was described by its director as part of ongoing engagement with faith leaders of all denominations.
Denver Archbishop James Golka led the delegation, which included Bishop Abdallah Elias Zaidan of the Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles; Bishop Edward Burns of Dallas; Bishop James Wall of Gallup, New Mexico; Archbishop Emeritus Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas; Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa; Archbishop Jeffrey Grob of Milwaukee; and Bishop Michael Barber, SJ, of Oakland, California.
Before the meeting concluded, the bishops gathered around Trump at the Resolute desk to pray. Golka led the intercession, thanking God for «the gift of our beautiful nation, the gift of our government, and the gift of this office of the presidency» and asking for God's blessing upon the president. He also thanked God for «the gift of your Son, Jesus,» saying, «He's right here with us. He redeems us, saves us, gives us immense mercy, guidance.» Golka invoked the Holy Spirit, asking that it «surround our country, to protect us against any influence of evil.»
White House Faith Director Jenny Korn told EWTN News that the meeting was organized by the White House Faith Office «as part of our ongoing engagement with faith leaders of all denominations from across the country.» Korn said the discussion covered «religious freedom, the role of the White House Faith Office, school choice, religious visas, and life policy.» She emphasized that the meeting was «not politics» but «policy in action ending with meaningful prayer with and for the president.» Paula White-Cain, the president's longtime spiritual adviser, also attended.
Following the meeting, Golka said in a statement that he «hopes the encounter will foster further dialogue on the sanctity of life, human dignity and other issues of concern to the Catholic Church.» The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said it had no role in organizing the event. «This was not something that the USCCB organized. It is not affiliated with the Conference,» said USCCB spokesperson Chieko Noguchi.
The meeting comes amid a mixed relationship between the U.S. bishops and the Trump administration. The two have aligned on issues including religious liberty and gender ideology, as well as some of Trump's pro-life initiatives. However, they have also clashed on other matters, including the administration's failure to reverse the Biden administration's policy on mail-order abortion drugs, the president's support for IVF, and the administration's mass deportation efforts.
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