If you’ve been watching the news, the big story has been about Bishop Mariann Budde, the minister at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Budde was asked to lead the presidential worship service as part of the inaugural events for President Trump. In her message, she made a plea to the president to show mercy, empathy, and compassion toward immigrants, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and children terrified that their families will be torn apart by an executive order.
Budde’s message was courageous and prophetic. The role of clergy isn’t an easy one. Our job isn’t always to preach happy sermons that make us feel good. Instead, our role is to be both pastoral and prophetic, which sometimes means speaking truth to power. Unfortunately, prophets aren’t always welcome…and neither is their message.
The role of pastor as prophet is, as it was from the beginning of the story of the divine-human relationship, to speak God’s truth into the lives of God’s people and the powers and principalities of the world. That includes calling us to repentance, but also addressing social injustice and calling for moral and ethical action. Budde was fulfilling that role in her message. And I stand with her.
In her message, Bishop Budde called for us as a nation and our leaders especially, to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love, and to walk humbly with each other and with God. And now she is being attacked in the most vile of ways on social media and in the news.
She has been called a false prophet. Her ministry has been called evil because “women aren’t supposed to be pastors or lead churches.” And she has had her life threatened. All because she asked arguably the most important leader in the world to exhibit the Christian qualities of mercy and compassion toward other human beings…other children of God who are loved by God just as much as we are.
The Bishop’s prophetic message was nothing more or less than a compassionate plea for mercy, empathy, and justice for those in our nation who will be impacted by the president’s policies and orders. Her plea for mercy and compassion toward marginalized and criminalized groups in our country was as faithful to Christ as any message spoken in any church could ever be. She reminded the world that human dignity and humanity don’t depend on the color of your skin or your gender or who you love or where you were born or what language you speak or what faith you profess. Every human being deserves to be treated with kindness and respect rather than contempt and cruelty.
And for those saying it was the wrong time, there is never a wrong time to ask someone who holds the fate of so many lives in his hands to be merciful. Jesus didn’t say be compassionate when it’s convenient…or be merciful when you feel like it. “Do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God” isn’t some cute saying. Along with loving your neighbor as yourself, it’s the way of life we’re called to as followers of Jesus Christ…and we need to live like it.