The National Prayer Breakfast - a Washington tradition since 1953 - is by custom a respite from partisan bickering. President Donald Trump shattered that tradition Thursday with aggressive remarks that buoyed his allies but dismayed a wide spectrum of faith leaders.
“A bipartisan prayer breakfast is the last place one would expect to find political attacks on opponents,” said the Rev. Tom Lambrecht, general manager of the conservative United Methodist magazine Good News. “Our country would benefit from a return to the kind of civility and grace reflected in Jesus’ words.”
...
The Rev. Jim Wallis, founder of the Christian social justice group Sojourners, took note of Trump’s assertion that faith should not be used as a justification for doing what someone knows is wrong.
“Apply this logic to Trump’s white evangelical supporters: they are willing to trade off and even sell out Jesus for the reward of getting judges they like in the Supreme Court,” Wallis said via email. “Jesus taught us to welcome immigrants, to reject the use of racial bigotry, to avoid lying and to respect and love all people as they are made in the image of God.”
...