WASHINGTON (OSV News) — A dozen U.S. Catholic bishops met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office Oct. 22 for a meeting that a White House official indicated included discussions on topics such as religious freedom and school choice.
Video footage of the meeting was posted by Margo Martin, a special assistant to the president and communications adviser at the White House, showing the bishops praying over Trump.
The meeting took place less than two weeks before the midterm elections. It came shortly after many U.S. bishops strongly objected to a proposed and later canceled livestream of a military execution, and after a recent survey by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center found Trump’s approval rating among U.S. Catholics has dropped from 47% at the beginning of his second term to 30% in October 2026.
Robert Schmuhl, professor emeritus of American studies at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, who critically observes the modern American presidency, told OSV News that Trump “keeps reminding audiences that they should vote in the midterms as though he were on the ballot. He’s not, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to appeal to every constituency.”
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has long held that it will not endorse or oppose specific candidates for public office, instead referring Catholics to its document “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” as a reference point for discerning their choices at the ballot box.
Chieko Noguchi, a spokesperson for the USCCB, told OSV News the organization had no role in the meeting.
In response to a request for comment about the meeting, Taylor Rogers, a spokeswoman for the White House, said in a written statement, “There has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump, and his strong record proves it: he stopped the weaponization of the federal government against Christians, proudly defended and expanded our religious rights, pardoned pro-life activists, stopped the chemical mutilation of our nation’s children, and protected parents’ rights.”
In response to a question on the meeting from reporters at the White House Oct. 23, Trump said, “It was a great meeting. Well, they prayed. They mostly prayed. It was actually a very nice meeting. They’re great. They were great people.”
A White House official told OSV News that attendees at the meeting were Archbishops James R. Golka of Denver and Jeffrey S. Grob of Milwaukee; Archbishop Emeritus Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas; Bishops Edward J. Burns of Dallas, James S. Wall of Gallup, New Mexico, Steven J. Raica of Birmingham, Alabama, Thomas J. Hennen of Baker, Oregon, Michael C. Barber of Oakland, California, Scott E. Bullock of Rapid City, South Dakota, and William M. Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa; and Bishops Francis Y. Kalabat of the Chaldean Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle in Detroit and A. Elias Zaidan of the St. Louis-based Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles.
An Oct. 22 statement on the meeting issued by the Archdiocese of Denver said Archbishop Golka “joined fellow Roman Catholic bishops in meeting with President Trump and led a prayer in the Oval Office, asking God’s blessing upon the president and our nation.”
“His prayer expressed gratitude for ‘our beautiful nation’ and asked the Holy Spirit ‘to surround our country to protect us against any influence of evil,'” the statement said. “With respect for the office of the president, the Archdiocese of Denver welcomes continued conversation on the sanctity of life, from conception to natural death, and the God-given dignity of every person.
“We invite the faithful to pray for our nation and its leaders, trusting in Christ’s mercy and guidance,” it said. “Praying for those in public office is a longstanding Catholic practice, rooted in St. Paul’s instruction to pray for all who hold authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2). It is not an endorsement of any specific candidate or party.”
Mario Enzler was also listed as an attendee by the White House official, described as liaison to the bishops. Enzler is a senior adviser at the Heritage Foundation. Enzler did not immediately respond to a request for comment from OSV News.
A spokesperson for the Heritage Foundation confirmed Oct. 23 Enzler’s attendance at the meeting but said he did not organize the meeting.
Schmuhl argued it is “revealing that the prayer meeting took place away from the media” and pointed to Enzler’s attendance at the meeting as a tie to a conservative think tank.
“Basically, you might say what occurred was more blatantly political than prayerful,” he said. “The president is often shown on a golf course. When’s the last time we saw him in church?”
White House Faith Director Jenny Korn wrote in a post on X that the meeting included discussions “on religious freedom, school choice, family tax credits, religious visas, and life,” and rejected characterization of the meeting as a “photo op.”
“They are leaders within their communities and have a seat at the table,” she said.
Korn’s list of topics from the meeting in her post did not include immigration. The U.S. bishops have objected to some of the immigration policies implemented by the Trump administration, specifically “indiscriminate” mass deportations, which are also estimated to affect more than 1 in 6 Catholics in the U.S. They have urged several reforms to immigration enforcement, such as ensuring families of mixed immigration status are not separated, citing the unnecessary harm done to their children, and that sensitive locations such as houses of worship, schools, and hospitals are protected from enforcement actions.
Analysts who spoke with OSV News about the Pew survey previously pointed to two issues that may have pushed Catholic voters away from Trump: some of the immigration policies Trump has implemented that Catholic leaders have objected to and Trump’s social media and verbal attacks on Pope Leo XIV earlier this year.
The midterm elections are scheduled for Nov. 3. Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the USCCB, issued a statement Oct. 14 reminding the faithful that “for citizens in a representative democracy such as our own, participation in public life — including voting — is both a right and a responsibility.”
Read more world news
Copyright © 2026 OSV News
