Milwaukee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob has released a public apology after meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House last week, where a photo was posted of them praying with the president.
Grob said in the letter, titled "A Public Aology," that he has received many questions and comments after the meeting which he and 11 other bishops attended. He said that the photo was distributed to the public without the consent of the participants.
"Please know that my intention was never to cause confusion, anger, or disappointment among the people entrusted to my care. My hope here is to provide some measure of context for my decision to participate," he said.
In the apology, Grob said it was "no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party."
He said that in mid September, he was invited to discuss matters important to the church, including immigration enforcement, religious worker visas and more. It was the second gathering, arranged by the Heritage Foundation, he said, but he wasn't at the first.
According to Grob, they were told the meeting was private and that several Catholic members of the Cabinet may have appeared, and there may also have been an opportunity to pray with the president privately.
"I took some time to weigh the decision and ultimately felt that, if I had the opportunity to offer my voice in a way that might improve the lives of God’s children, I ought to take it. I pray for our elected officials on a daily basis, so it seemed appropriate to do so in person," he wrote.
Grob said they had a 90-minute discussion with White House staff and were eventually ushered into the Oval Office, where they met the president. He said photos were taken, and also a video, but they didn't know about the video. He said permission was never given.
It did not take long thereafter for the White House to post a video and photos of the prayer. I soon began receiving messages of serious concern over the possibility that I had inadvertently participated in a political event less than two weeks before a national election. I also heard from some who felt wounded because of the ways they or their family had been harmed by the president’s policies.
"I feel a heavy sadness, not only over the pain I caused, but also for the fact that something so sacred to a group of religious leaders, prayer to our Heavenly Father, would be manipulated in that way," he wrote. "We came in good faith to try to work for the betterment of our fellow human beings, to ease their suffering, to build up the common good, and to pray with a president, not to pose for a political photo opportunity to benefit the few. We should never have been put in that position by the White House. I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them. Please know that I have heard these concerns, understand how I caused them, and I apologize for any damage my actions have done."
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
