Rightwing Pastor Blasted After Claiming Obama's Presidential Library Is An 'Intentional Slight To God'

Conservative radio pastor Todd Friel was criticized after denouncing former President Barack Obama's new presidential library as "anti-Christian," saying the building "is a tangible symbol" of Obama’s "horrific... utterly destructive world views."

Friel, the host of Wretched TV, made the remarks ahead of the library's scheduled opening on Juneteenth. Located in Chicago's Park District, the library is the jewel of a 19.3-acre campus that includes the city's first "fully inclusive" playground designed to accommodate children with disabilities.

But for Friel, the library is a terrible thing that reveals Obama's "fundamental redesign for America"—not that what he said made any logical sense.

Friel said:

“He is sending a message in keeping with his fundamental redesign for America. This building is a tangible symbol of Barack Obama’s horrific, his utterly destructive worldviews. It’s also an intentional slight to God.”

“And that is why I believe President Obama continues to speak even though he’s not officially in office. He doesn’t speak with his slips. He speaks with architecture. And what he is saying is as odious as ever. For his presidential center."

"It shouts, “I hate this America. I hate tradition. And I reject God’s ordering of reality.”

“The new Barack Obama Center continues to proclaim America needs to be fundamentally changed, torn down, and discarded. And you can take God with it. And that is why Barack Obama’s new building, besides being just an atrocious eyesore, is downright diabolical. Just like the fellow who designed it.“

You can hear what he said in the video below.

At no point does Friel consider that President Donald Trump, whom he fervently supports, might be "anti-Christian" considering Trump is an adjudicated rapist whose name appears in the Epstein files 38,000 times.

We also wonder if Friel might consider it "anti-Christian" that Trump egged his supporters on to participate in a failed insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in 2021 and was even convicted in a campaign finance fraud case. He has launched a war in Iran that kicked off a global energy crisis, sending gas prices soaring and exacerbating a nationwide affordability crisis.

Friel also completely overlooked the fact that Trump has used his presidency to enrich himself at the expense of taxpayers at a dizzying rate, whether it's false promises about a "made in America" Trump phone, his $10 billion suit against the IRS, or his sons investing in companies that win no-bid contracts with the U.S. government.

Moreover, Friel probably should have considered that Trump was convicted in 2024 on 34 felony counts, including falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels to illegally influence the 2016 election—to say nothing of a long history of fraud and abuse that has landed him in court for decades.

Friel was harshly criticized.

Speaking of "anti-Christian" behavior, last month, Mark Burns, the pastor of the Harvest Praise & Worship Center in South Carolina and board member of Pastors for Trump, lashed out after a golden statue of Trump erected in Miami was criticized for ignoring biblical messaging about "idol worship."

The statue, titled “Don Colossus,” portrays Trump with his fist raised in the air—a pose reminiscent of the gesture he made following the failed 2024 assassination attempt at a Pennsylvania rally—and was commissioned by a group of cryptocurrency investors.

To hear Burns tell it, the statue "was created as a symbol of resilience, patriotism, courage, and gratitude" and "to honor a man whom many may disagree with, but millions of Americans believe has done extraordinary things to make this nation stronger."

He might, much like Friel, need to pick up his Bible and actually read it next time.