The cardinal called it “a great honor and privilege” to offer the prayer at the invitation of Jake Tapper, CNN anchor and chief Washington correspondent, on the program “We Remember 500,000: A National Memorial Service for Covid-19.”

The faith-based office, founded under President George W. Bush, evolved over the past two decades, but it became moribund under President Donald Trump, who preferred to talk only with evangelical leaders who supported him.

On Ash Wednesday, Joe Biden urged Americans to hold in prayer those who have suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic while “look[ing] with hope and anticipation toward Easter and brighter days ahead.”

Public disagreements among the U.S. bishop are rare but not unprecedented. A contentious debate about the church and AIDS in 1987 is perhaps the situation most similar to the divisions over how to welcome President Biden.

The order reestablishes the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, a 20-year-old initiative first put in place by President George W. Bush.

If there is one thing Joe Biden does not need, it's a lawsuit against the Little Sisters of the Poor.