Bishops' Logo
February 3, 2025
A Letter to the Honorable President of the United States, Donald J. Trump
From the Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church
Dear President Trump:
We greet you in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, whom we United Methodists claim as Lord and Savior.
We pray for you and your Administration. May God grant you wisdom and sustaining grace as you serve as President of the United States, and as a world leader.
Our letter comes to you at this critical time because of your Administration’s Executive Order to suspend all U.S. foreign assistance programs and subsequent Work Stop Order issued by the Department of State. We present our concern to you after much prayer and in response to our Christian faith in the Wesleyan Tradition. As religious leaders of The United Methodist Church, we believe that we bishops are called to be pastors and prophets in every generation. Furthermore, our United Methodist Church understands its role in political matters in the manner that is defined by our Social Principles.
Our involvement in political systems is rooted in the Gospel imperative to love our neighbors, to do justice, and to care for the vulnerable. As United Methodists, we acknowledge that love requires responsible political action and engagement aimed at the betterment of society and the promotion of the common good. We acknowledge that such political engagement demands humility and mindfulness of our own complicity in perpetuating injustice. It also necessitates compassion, prayer, and a willingness to discern God’s guidance.
We further believe that God calls all members of the human family to recognize and protect the dignity and worth of all people and to work for the well-being of all God’s creation. (The Social Principles of The United Methodist Church)
Your Administration’s recent Executive Order to suspend all U.S. foreign assistance programs for 90 days raises profound concerns for The United Methodist Church. As a world-wide Church we engage with congregations and communities throughout the world. We bear a long-standing commitment to serving the vulnerable and promoting global justice. In seeking to understand your perspective on this particular matter we have learned that your Administration is concerned that U.S. foreign aid may not align with American interests. We would respectfully ask that you consider the moral imperative to assist those in need and the significant contributions programs supported by U.S. foreign aid make to humanitarian relief and peace.
The United Methodist Church has an agency, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), that provides relief and assistance in response to natural and human-made disasters in addition to supporting programs in the areas of migration, health, food security and environmental sustainability. Through this global response effort that today spans 85 years of service, we have often partnered with U.S. relief offices and efforts and learned how U.S. aid fosters global stability, alleviates suffering, and promotes the well-being of communities in need. We also know that today U.S. Foreign Aid comprises only about 1% of the federal budget. Yet, this 1% plays a crucial role in reflecting the U.S. values of compassion and service, values we United Methodists are deeply committed to as well.
As Christians we believe that we are called to care for our neighbors, regardless of race, religion, status or nationality. These are not uniquely Christian values. We share these values and teachings with persons of Jewish, and Muslim faith as well as persons of other faiths. Coming to the aid of the less fortunate and advocating for justice are shared values among people of faith, but we also believe that they are values upon which the U.S. was founded.
Recently we have come to know that a justification framework being implemented by your Administration to determine the distribution of U.S. foreign assistance is the requirement that every dollar of U.S. foreign assistance be evaluated on its impact on U.S. national security, strength, and prosperity. We lament that this justification framework overlooks aid's spiritual and ethical dimensions. Faith communities understand that humanitarian assistance is a matter of security, but it is also an expression of love and compassion. Inaction can create vacuums for adversarial influences to thrive, undermining both the stability and the safety of vulnerable populations.
As we write this letter to you, Mr. President, we are attending to the needs of United Methodists in areas like the Democratic Republic of the Congo where there is much political unrest. We are praying and working not only for the protection of United Methodists but the protection of all who are vulnerable in this part of the world affected by extreme conflict and poverty. As you know, serious circumstances of this nature are happening in regions all over the world. We are deeply concerned that abruptly ending aid in regions of the world like the DRC could exacerbate suffering and create environments ripe for even greater and long-standing unrest, forced migration, and death.
In conclusion, we again commit to continuously pray for you and your Administration and to live the values of our faith in support of compassion and justice in the U.S. and in the world. We urge you, as the President of the United States, to consider that the call to assist others in crisis is a moral obligation of both national and spiritual dimensions.
We strongly ask you to rescind the Executive Order to suspend all U.S. foreign assistance programs for 90 days.
May the words of the Psalmist be upon all our hearts as we discern our living in these days.
Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
Psalm 82:3-4
Respectfully,
Bishop Tracy S. Malone, President
Council of Bishops
The United Methodist Church