Two nights ago in Washington DC, the President of the United States ordered the violent clearing of peaceful protesters out of Lafayette Park in order that he could walk to St. John's Church to have a photo op, Bible in hand. This violent clearing of the park included a priest of St. John’s as well. While there were other violent protests in the country, Lafayette park was not one. This was amply attested to by video taped witness reported on by multiple news sources across the political spectrum, worldwide.

MacGregor EMC unequivocally condemns these actions of the President as the fundamental abuse of Christianity they are. In the Bible, we learn of the importance of living peacefully (1 Peter 3:11), standing up for others who cannot stand up for themselves (Isaiah 1:17), and loving other people, just as God loves them as well (1 John 4:19). What the President did last night flew in the face of all these beliefs that are central to the Christian faith, and went farther still. Due to the religious nature of the photo shoot, it presented the violent actions taken by the president as condoned from a Christian perspective. This is simply not the case.

Our condemnation of these actions are non-partisan. These are actions that would be worthy of condemnation regardless of the political affiliation of the perpetrator.

While we are a Canadian Church and as such we recognize that we are not directly affected by the events currently transpiring in the United States, we nevertheless view this affront to the Christian witness by a figure as prominent as the President to extend beyond borders, and as such warrants being addressed directly.

We pray that in time the President will come to a personal realization of the great error of these actions and will grow in his role as a result. We also continue to pray for the American people and their various governmental bodies during this difficult time.