Happy National Prayer Day!
The Presidential Prayer Team reminds us that today, May 6, is the National Day of Prayer.
President Bush himself issued a proclamation to this effect, in quite stirring words:
Prayer is an opportunity to praise God for His mighty works, His gift of freedom, His mercy, and His boundless love. Through prayer, we recognize the limits of earthly power and acknowledge the sovereignty of God. According to Scripture, "the Lord is near to all who call upon Him . . . He also will hear their cry, and save them." Prayer leads to humility and a grateful heart, and it turns our minds to the needs of others.
On this National Day of Prayer, we pray especially for the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces who are serving around the world to defend the cause of liberty. We are grateful for their courage and sacrifice and ask God to comfort their families while they are away from home. We also pray that the people of Iraq and Afghanistan, and throughout the Greater Middle East, may live in safety and freedom. During this time, we continue to ask God's blessing for our Nation, granting us strength to meet the challenges ahead and wisdom as we work to build a more peaceful future for all.
The Congress, by Public Law 100-307, as amended, has called on our citizens to reaffirm the role of prayer in our society by recognizing annually a "National Day of Prayer."
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 6, 2004, as a National Day of Prayer. I ask the citizens of our Nation to give thanks, each according to his or her own faith, for the freedoms and blessings we have received and for God's continued guidance and protection. I also urge all Americans to join in observing this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
AMEN. Lord knows that the National Day of Prayer couldn't come at a better time for the President.
For those of you who didn't know about today's significance (?!), click here for some historical background.
A bill mandating a National Day of Prayer was passed unanimously in Congress and signed into law by President Truman in 1952. It required that the President select a day each year for national prayer.
Public Law 100-307, to which President Bush refers above, began in 1988 as Senate Bill S 1378 introduced by Strom Thurmond (R - South Carolina) to establish that the first Thursday of every May be celebrated as the National Day of Prayer. It was matched by a House version introduced by Tony Hall (D - Ohio), received broad bipartisan support, and was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan.
And this year's celebration is especially blessed ...
Guess who this year's Honorary Chairman of the National Day of Prayer is.
Give up?
Col. Oliver North.
To say we are honored by Col. North's partnership with our ministry would be an understatement," NDP Vice Chairman Jim Weidmann said. "He is a man of integrity and faith who has conducted himself with tremendous personal strength and grace during some very difficult circumstances. With this year's theme and because of the Colonel's recent war coverage for FOX News, we couldn't be more pleased to have him as our Honorary Chairman."
Yes, I think just about everyone who committed a crime during the Nixon-Ford-Reagan-Bush years has received some honor under the Bush administration.
North has used his position as Honorary Chairman to speak out on the Pledge of Allegiance controversy:
Freedom. Our forefathers gave their lives for it. And the Constitution ensures it. But today, some believe that freedom should be restricted. Our First Amendment rights are under attack-from the Pledge of Allegiance to our right to pray in the public square.
So, what does the Constitution guarantee us?
The freedom to gather with our family, our friends and our communities.
The freedom to worship-not restricted by laws or regulations.
But, most of all, our right to free speech grants us the freedom to pray.
For more than two centuries, the American cry has been "Let freedom ring!" It cannot be silenced by vague rhetoric or judicial tyranny. It cannot be silenced by talk of political correctness or intolerance.
It CANNOT be silenced.
Freedom. It is our most basic right. No one can take that away from us. America needs your prayers-now more than ever.
Yes, to question the constitutionality of the Pledge or prayer in public schools (or a government mandated prayer holiday?) is to hate freedom. And we all know who else hates freedom, now don't we?
Col. North and I are praying for you.
Postscript: Be sure not to miss out on the Presidential Prayer Team's latest special offer. For a generous donation, they are offering PPT dog tags (see picture). They serve both to honor the troops and to remind you that they need your prayers.
Order today.
[n.b. This post has been edited.]
UPDATE
As an overworked and underpaid (though tenure-track) philosophy professor posting at 2am before going to bed, I didn't have the time or the energy to offer a sober analysis of the story. Fortunately, Slacktivist picked up the slack with some excellent commentary:
In 1952, Congress passed a law establishing the National Day of Prayer as an annual religious observance.
Quick: give me another sentence that uses the words "Congress," "law," "establish" and "religion."
[snip]
I find the idea of an official National Day of Prayer, like the "under God" clause in the Pledge of Allegiance, a bit hard to swallow. Either it's a serious affirmation of religion -- in which case it seems to violate the Establishment Clause, or else it's a hollow exercise in civil religion -- in which case it seems to violate serious religious faith.
The Washington Post also picked up the story. It turns out that the President is celebrating the National Day of Prayer at the White House with evangelical Christian leaders. The ceremonies will be shown tonight on Christian cable and satellite TV. If it's carried on one of my cable channels, I'll be sure to watch and report back.
The Post article notes:
Since the mid-1980s, the ceremony has been organized by the nonprofit task force headed by two prominent evangelical women: Vonette Bright, widow of Campus Crusade for Christ founder Bill Bright, and Shirley Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family founder James C. Dobson.
[snip]
[Bright] also made no apologies about the exclusion of Muslims and others outside of the "Judeao-Christian tradition" from ceremonies planned by the task force on Capitol Hill and in state capitals across the country. "They are free to have their own national day of prayer if they want to," she said. "We are a Christian task force."
Consider also the reasons they give (apart from the President's appeal and the fact that it is a federally mandated holiday) for participating in the National Day of Prayer:
Why Pray? We need to pray because the Bible commands us to (Matthew 6:5; Romans 12:12; 1 Thess 5:17). Prayer is how we communicate with God and participate in His works. It grants us the privilege of experiencing God, keeps us humble before Him, strengthens the bonds between believers and can succeed where other means have failed.
In short, we should participate because the New Testament commands it.
This is, of course, a far cry from the inclusive character of President Clinton's vision of the National Day of Prayer. To quote his 1998 proclamation,
In every city, town, and rural community across our country, people of every religious denomination gather to worship according to their faith. In churches, synagogues, temples, and mosques, Americans come together to pray.
SECOND UPDATE
I just caught President Bush's comments on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.
They were along the same lines as the stirring comments quoted above.
However, the following introductory remarks are worth noting:
We are as grateful, as well, to all the organizers of the National Day of Prayer, and especially for the gracious leadership of Shirley Dobson. We're also glad you brought Jim with you. (Laughter and applause.)
Colonel Oliver North is the 2004 National Day of Prayer Honorary Chairman. Thank you for taking on the job. I appreciate it. (Applause.)
I also want to welcome Vonette Bright, the former National Day of Prayer Task Force Chairman. Vonette, we're honored you're with us. Thank you for coming.
It would be nice if a reporter asked President Bush whether he agrees with Ms. Bright's ostracism of Muslims and other faiths from the National Day of Prayer, or whether he approves of "Jim" [i.e. James Dobson] and his gay-bashing.
1:50:33 AM 
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