By Ayo Kehinde
Rector Of St Johns Church, Georgetown
Bible-holding President Trump in an attempt to calm frayed nerves of Americans protesting the Minneapolis police brutality and killing of African-America George Floyd, has been chided for desecrating, the “holy grounds,” of the over 200 year old St John Church.
Trump started his religious publicity stunt on Tuesday by posing on the steps of the Church with a Bible in his right hand.
Rector of the St Johns Episcopal Church of Georgetown, Gini Gerbasi who spoke with the CNN on Tuesday, described what she called an invasion of “Holy Ground”, by the police and the tear-gas and whipping of “innocent protesters, as outrageous and condemnable.”
According to her: “We were with some people offering medical services and handing out water when we began to see smoke. I never would have imagined I would see an entire rank of police officers in black shield, literally dragging, pulling people. While there were tear gas on people’s eyes and others trapped on the grounds of the church, we heard gunshots. When I saw police up close, I had to grab something an run.”
Arguing that president Trump, “went to St John to raise a Bible, not to pray”, she said she was, “deeply offended that the attack on innocent protesters took place on Holy Ground… literally desecrated it with those officers wheeling around, and aggressively attacking innocent protesters. When I learnt that people had been hurt, I can hardly begin to describe how I feel”
“It was a sacrilege on the ground of peace, love, compassion to push people out there. The violence signified the government and to stand in front of the church with a Holy Bible was a sacrilege, an absolute sacrilege. Those words of peace, generosity means nothing to those who chased people who are marginalized. And visit violence on holy ground of over 200 years is a sacrilege. He has never entered the Church; this is a sacrilege. I feel heart broken”
