Catholic leaders are splitting over President Trump’s visit to Washington’s shrine to Pope John Paul II to symbolize his support for religious tolerance and highlight his new executive order on religious freedom, one of the administration’s key agenda items.
The Tuesday visit by Trump and first lady Melania Trump turned controversial when it was slammed by Washington Archbishop Wilton Gregory. It came a day after the president’s Monday evening walk to visit the riot-damaged St. John’s Church a block from the White House.
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“I find it baffling and reprehensible that any Catholic facility would allow itself to be so egregiously misused and manipulated in a fashion that violates our religious principles, which call us to defend the rights of all people, even those with whom we might disagree,” Gregory said in a statement.
Thank you @FLOTUS and @realDonaldTrump for your friendship to people of faith in this country and your defense of religious freedom around the world.
St. John Paul II, pray for us and for the United States of America! https://t.co/QgYtaEJIKf
— CatholicVote.org (@CatholicVote) June 3, 2020
But knowledgeable sources said that Gregory was just piling on Trump and aired no concerns when the trip was suggested last week. What’s more, they said, is that he declined to attend an event for the executive order on “International Religious Freedom” that was scrubbed as the George Floyd protests and riots swept the nation.
CatholicVote President Brian Burch took the unusual step of issuing a statement critical of Gregory.
“It is regrettable that the archbishop of Washington chose this occasion to engage in a partisan attack on the president, especially when the country is in desperate need of healing and unity. Millions of Catholics in the United States, including many within the archbishop’s own flock, are grateful for today’s executive order. The protection of religious minorities is a bipartisan issue that has enjoyed unanimous support in Congress as well as the Trump and Obama administrations,” he said.
Burch added that Gregory’s “unfortunate partisan attack needlessly politicizes this important issue and distracts from the plight of vulnerable religious minorities around the world.”
Thank you @realDonaldTrump and @VP for signing executive order supporting global religious freedom. To the persecuted: America is in your corner. pic.twitter.com/aH2fxPzH9X
— Grazie P Christie MD (@GChristiemd) June 3, 2020
The White House said the key elements of the new executive order are:
- Directing U.S. ambassadors and foreign service officers to promote, defend, and support religious freedom.
- The U.S. will prioritize religious freedom in our foreign aid programs and use other economic tools to help advance these goals.
- The State Department will coordinate with USAID to ensure at least $50 million per year is allocated for programs that advance international religious freedom.
