The Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde came to the attention of the Joe Biden presidential campaign when she rebuked President Donald Trump for using tear gas to stage a photo op at a church.
She was invited to give the benediction for the second night of the Democratic National Convention, and appropriately took a nonpartisan approach. She began her 1:03-minute prayer by quoting pastor and peace activist William Sloane Coffin:
May God give you the grace never to sell yourself short;
grace to do something big for something good;
grace to remember the world is
too dangerous now for anything but truth
and too small for anything but love.
She continued with aspirations for peace, justice and unity. There is no way to know how many people were watching it live, as many networks apparently cut away in favor of commentary. But her local CBS affiliate, WUSA of Washington, has posted the video, and you can watch it there.
— Kirk Petersen
Kirk Petersen began reporting news for TLC as a freelancer in 2016, and was Associate Editor from 2019 to 2024, focusing especially on matters of governance in the Episcopal Church.
