Three weeks after he described President Joe Biden as “stupid” in a talk about forgiveness, a Catholic bishop in Michigan has apologized for insulting the politician while criticizing his pseudo-Catholicism.
The Democrat commander-in-chief has long been scrutinized for publicly contradicting major tenets of the Catholic faith in which he was baptized—and that which he claims to remain committed. Notably, Biden’s advocacy of abortion, contraception and gender ideology is unquestionably in contradiction to the teachings of the Catholic Church and have been publicly condemned by Church leaders and laity alike.
Bishop Robert Gruss of the Diocese of Saginaw, Michigan, is one of the many clergy members who have criticized Biden’s alleged commitment to Catholicism. During an April 5 talk given at the Cathedral of Mary of the Assumption, Gruss expressed his belief that Biden is ignorant regarding the teachings of the faith he claims to hold.
In his talk, the bishop said that he does not “have any anger” towards Biden but instead “feel[s] sorry for him” because he is “just stupid.” Gruss continued, explaining that his comments alluded “not [to] stupidity in the derogatory way” but in light of the apparent reality that “he doesn’t understand the Catholic faith.”
The bishop added that Catholics who are “harboring” feelings against Biden that are “negative” or “resentful” are “not free,” as this mindset is “letting him control you and your thoughts and your words and your actions.” He further warned that allowing such thoughts to permeate one’s mind would lead people to “commit sin.”
Gruss also encouraged people who do struggle with anger towards the pseudo-Catholicism presented by Biden to bring it up in the sacrament of confession to “free” themselves from that sinful anger.
Following backlash for his remarks, Gruss posted on X both his original talk and an April 20 statement that apologized for any misunderstanding caused by his words.
My video on the talk about Forgiveness and Unforgivenesshttps://t.co/NGK3GiCvno
My apology. https://t.co/kM9qo3D877
— Bishop Robert Gruss (@BishopGruss) April 20, 2024
The bishop explained that his commentary about Biden was “taken out of context,” that his intent with the words was to emphasize the need to “forgive” political leaders “who offend us by their words and actions.” Gruss also noted that “harbor[ing] resentment” towards the president and others “would be sinful,” hence his warning to avoid it.
According to the statement shared by the Diocese of Saginaw, Gruss added that “we must forgive them if we are to be free” and encouraged the public to watch the entire presentation “to understand what was really said.” He also said that he “apologize[s]” for having used the word “stupid” to describe Biden but pointed out that he was not trying “to be disparaging.”
