Bishop Mariann Budde And The Ketchup-Covered Christians

        The way I see it, there are two kinds of Christians:
        The first kind treat their religion like a sort of God-given holy ketchup of sanctified self-righteousness that they pour all over themselves. They go through  life - and often on social media - spouting holy-speak, proclaiming their love for and personal attachment to Jesus to make sure everybody else knows what they themselves believe: that they're special, blessed, spiritual, good, right and, especially, above reproach because of their exceptional relationship to God, who is in them well-pleased. And don't you forget it.
          But it's all just so much holy ketchup covering what's underneath, which might be fine, but which also might be rancid with self-satisfaction or unkindness or intolerance or greed or cruelty or all of the above that they can't or won't recognize in themselves because the holy ketchup has gunked up their consciences and leaked into their souls.

         The second kind of Christians are all the ones who aren't first kind. The ones who, be they good, bad, or indifferent, nonetheless don't feel the need to cover themselves in holy ketchup and make sure everyone knows they're Christian. Subsequently they don't stand out like the first kind.
​           Now,  it has come to pass that for the past several days since the Presidential inauguration of Donald Trump, the ketchup-covered Christians have been in a state of outrage.
​          On the Friday before Trump's inauguration there was a massive D.C.  Make America Great Again pep rally that kicked off with  a veritable holy ketchup Christian fest led by holy ketchup Christian podcasters Angela Halili and Arielle Reitsma, aka Girls Gone Bible,  

...who thanked God for choosing Donald Trump to be His vessel and prayed mightily for God to empower Trump while granting America  "power beyond belief." They likewise prayed for the condemnation of anyone who opposed Trump, declaring that, as God was for Donald Trump, who could be against Donald Trump? 
           The holy ketchup continued to copiously flow all weekend long in the D.C. area with several worship and prayer services led by Christian Nationalist MAGA worship leader and entrepreneur Sean Feucht,​

...who sang the praises of the Lord and Donald Trump and said things like, “The weapons of our worship are ready to praise over our nation’s capitol” and “What a truly historic day to have this many BOLD BELIEVERS serving in the top positions of government in our nation!” and "Take back territory for his kingdom."
​          And all this holy ketchup made Donald Trump as happy as having a big glob of regular ketchup on his cheeseburger.

         But then came inauguration day and the traditional inaugural interfaith prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral where Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington D.C., 

...said the following words during her sermon:

     “Let me make one final plea, Mr. President. Millions have put their trust in you and, as you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now.
      "There are gay, lesbian and transgender children in Democratic, Republican, and Independent families, some who fear for their lives. The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in poultry farms and meat packing plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals. They…may not be citizens or have the proper documentation. But the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, gurudwaras and temples.
      "I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away. And that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land.
       "May God grant us the strength and courage to honor the dignity of every human being, to speak the truth to one another in love and walk humbly with each other and our God for the good of all people. Good of all people in this nation and the world. Amen.”
​        And with those words Bishop Mariann Budde hosed off the holy ketchup and went at the consciences of Donald Trump and his entourage with a roto-rooter. They did not like it,

...and have been howling ever since over the affront. On his Truth Social site Donald Trump petulantly wrote:
    "The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical Left hard line Trump hater. She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart. She failed to mention the large number of illegal migrants that came into our Country and killed people...Apart from her inappropriate statements, the service was a very boring and uninspiring one. She is not very good at her job!"

         Others of Trump's ketchupy minions have called for Bishop Budde  to publicly apologize to Donald Trump, called her a national embarrassment, called for her to be deported, called for her death.
         But  Mariann Budde's words asking for mercy, compassion and humanity are the heart and soul of of the Gospels. And for saying those words there are those who would like to see her crucified. 
        But here's something I keep wondering: Among that crowd of hundreds in the National Cathedral who heard Bishop Budde speak, and in the millions of holy ketchup-covered Christians who've read what she said, might there be one whose heart her words changed? 

References:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/who-is-rev-mariann-budde-bishop-who-drew-trump-s-ire-at-prayer-service/ar-AA1xKCrD

https://www.npr.org/2025/01/22/nx-s1-5270918/bishop-mariann-edgar-budde-trump-interview

AA1xKaRghttps://baptistnews.com/article/when-worship-becomes-an-act-of-cruelty/

​https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2025/01/22/what-did-the-bishop-say-to-trump-during-prayer-service-heres-the-full-transcript/