Critics have accused President Biden of mocking Catholics by making the sign of the cross as a fellow Democrat condemned Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for placing time limits on abortion. Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried accused DeSantis of shifting the abortion time limit from 15 weeks to 6 weeks to shore up a conservative base during his Presidential campaign.
As Fried spoke, President Biden made the sign of the cross, a well-known gesture among Catholics, prompting audible gasps from the audience. CatholicVote President Brian Burch stated that he was stunned by the President’s actions, saying he was “either terribly naive, or senile, or callously indifferent to the foundational beliefs of millions of Christians.”
Biden is the first Catholic US President since John F. Kennedy, and his position on abortion frequently brings him into conflict with the church. For example, while campaigning for the White House in 2019, he visited a Catholic service in South Carolina, but the priest, Robert Morey, refused to give him communion. As part of the Catholic faith, to receive communion, a person must be free of unrepented sin, but Morey cited Biden’s beliefs about abortion as evidence that he could not be in the “state of grace” required to receive Catholic sacraments.
Several senior church figures agreed with Mr. Morey’s stance, and Biden’s pro-abortion perspective has prompted many Catholics to call for his expulsion. In 2021, immediately after he entered the White House, a debate emerged within the church as to whether the President should be permitted to take communion at the weekly service he attends.
Bishops expressed concerns that Biden would confuse Catholics by professing his faith while simultaneously campaigning for protected access to abortion. The Conference of Catholic Bishops voted on the issue that year and appeared to reach a compromise that allowed Biden to stay in the church. They advised Catholics who “exercise public authority” to examine their conscience. The Pope, however, said the President is a “good Catholic” and should receive communion.