A group of faith leaders, including a number of Christian and evangelical pastors, have held a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House this week in which they prayed for him and the nation.
A White House statement confirmed that the president met with religious leaders on Tuesday morning.
"President Donald J. Trump met with faith leaders this morning in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. They took the time to pray for the president and for the Nation," the statement said. "The leaders discussed the Administration's many accomplishments for the American people and how the communities they represent from across the country are benefiting from these important policies."
It has been confirmed that among the participants at the meeting were: Paula White Cain; former Republican Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann; American Values President Gary Bauer; Dr. James Dobson; Free Chapel Senior Pastor Jentezen Franklin; Prestonwood Baptist Church Senior Pastor Jack Graham; First Baptist Dallas Senior Pastor Robert Jeffress; Harvest Christian Fellowship Senior Pastor Greg Laurie; National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference President, the Rev. Samuel Rodriguez; and Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, among others.
A number of the attendees spoke publicly about the event. "We had a great day @WhiteHouse with faith leaders. We talked & prayed with President @realDonaldTrump in the Roosevelt Room," tweeted Franklin on Tuesday. "I'm thankful that we are given the opportunity to discuss important policy issues and always the President asks us to lay hands on him and pray."
Johnnie Moore, an adviser in the Trump administration, described it as a "great morning" and said the president was "confident and spirited".
"Great discussion & CELEBRATION of many achievements like: criminal justice reform, defending religious freedom, reducing abortion, combatting the opioid crisis & trafficking, the end of ISIS & Baghdadi," Moore posted on Twitter on Wednesday.
The core purpose of the gathering was for the president to inform the religious leaders of "the continuing, remarkable accomplishments of this administration — especially in areas that are important to evangelicals," said Jeffress.
"I've never seen President Trump more upbeat, positive, and focused than I did in Tuesday's meeting," Jeffress said. "At the end of the meeting, several asked if they could pray for the president and he graciously welcomed the offer — as he always does."
