Columnist Criticizes Catholic Bishops’ Oval Office Prayer With Trump

A dozen Catholic bishops visited the Oval Office the week before Gustavo Arellano’s Oct. 31, 2026, column in the Los Angeles Times, where they stood around President Trump while he sat with his eyes closed and his hands clasped. Denver Archbishop James Golka placed his hand on Trump’s shoulder, thanked God for “the gift of this office and presidency,” and asked the Holy Spirit to protect the United States “against any influence of evil,” according to the column.

Arellano, a columnist, wrote that the scene looked like a political photo opportunity and questioned how sincere the prayer appeared. He noted that a majority of Catholic voters chose Trump in 2024, and that polls show many of them now regret that decision.

The reaction to the bishops’ appearance was strong enough that four of them have since either apologized or said they were not endorsing any candidate, the column reports. One of them, Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, said he wished he had remembered Jesus’ instruction to the apostles to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Arellano wrote that this counsel applies to voters in this election, whether or not they are Catholic (Ephesians 4:15).

Arellano contrasted the bishops’ conduct with that of Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde. The column states that at an interfaith service the day after Trump’s 2025 inauguration, Budde told the president and members of his administration: “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy on the people in our country who are scared now.”

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