National Day of Prayer

Did you even know today was National Day of Prayer? Since when has this been in effect? I know Bush said 9/11 was a day of prayer but a National thing for today? Why is it that only Church bells rang and bibles were quoted? Why wasn't this proclaimed and stressed as a National Day of Prayer for all religions? so the United States really is a officially a Christian country after all, this totally clears up that question for me.

The Official Site for National Day of Prayer
President Delivers Remarks on the National Day of Prayer
Bush's appearance at the prayer event in the East Room came just minutes after he apologized for the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers - a statement he made standing side-by-side with the king of Jordan, part of the Arab community outraged by photographs taken of the abuse.

"We cannot be neutral in the face of injustice or cruelty or evil," Bush said in his prayer day remarks, without specifically referring to the war in Iraq. "God is not on the side of any nation, yet we know he is on the side of justice. And it is the deepest strength of America that from the hour of our founding, we have chosen justice as our goal."

"Our greatest failures as a nation have come when we lost sight of that goal: in slavery, in segregation, and in every wrong that has denied the value and dignity of life. Our finest moments have come when we have faithfully served the cause of justice for our own citizens and for the people of other lands."

Religious Networks Broadcasting Bush's White House Prayer Event
"This event has very strong underpinnings of partisan support for the president, and that's what it's designed to do," said Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "It's not like he is ignoring other religious groups, but he knows that this day is the one where he signals 'I am an evangelical Christian. Remember that in November.'"


correction: Bush does acknowledges Judaism.



[Edited on 5-6-2004 by worldwatcher]

We had one of them last year, too. I was established after 9-11. I, too, have only heard stuff from the Bible, but I typically listen to christian radio shows/music, so I suspect that may be why I didn't hear anything else

Hehe, I missed bumping heads with ya, WW

same here JJ

but wasn't September 11th, the day of prayer?? why was today selected and again why not spread the word to all people of every faith who reside in this country.

Prayer is not a bad thing in any religion, why did Bush alienate everyone else, muslims, hindus, etc, etc? ( you don't have to anwer that question, the second article I linked tells the reason clearly)

I think this FAQ might answer some questions. I'll keep looking to see if I can find something more in depth.

www.nationaldayofprayer.com...

EDIT: Oh, and I was wrong about it only going on for a brief time. It's been on the first Thursday of May since 1988. Bush just drew attention to it after 9-11, and it became a big thing.

[Edited on 5-6-2004 by junglejake]

from the website:

Q: Why don't you include other faiths in your events?
A: The NDP was created by an act of Congress and is therefore intended for all peoples of faith. However, the NDP Task Force's expression of that involvement is specifically limited to the Judeo-Christian heritage and to those who share that conviction as it represents the spiritual background of 86% of the U.S. population. If peoples of other faith wish to celebrate in their own tradition, they are welcome to do so, but we must be true to those who have supported this effort and volunteered their time to promote it. The NDP is not a function of the government, and therefore a particular expression of it can be defined by those who choose to organize it. Of course, NDP events are open for anyone to attend.

86% of the country? really? I wasn't aware of that particular percentage... I still find it attempts of impressing a particular religion on all and being a conflict with the separation of church and state.

I have come to the understanding that this forum is being moderated by many now and so that issues don't come up;

let me explain how I see this as a conspiracy in religion. This country foundation is based on separation of church and state. The biggest conspiracy right now IMO is that a religion war is being waged, and that with the Bush Administration is no longer separating church and state. His religious beliefs are more openly touted and is being seen as the opinion of an entire nation instead of a just a man who is supposed to represent us all. Plus the fact the National Prayer Day has excluded and is alienating many other religions and faiths and nonfaiths followers in this country.

i hope this is conspiracy enough for all to agree on. ty

does anybody really care that today was National Prayer Day? how many people just walked about going on with their daily lives. if you are one of these people, thank you for supporting seperation of church and state!

give me a break. First off there is notin in the constituion about the seperation of the church and state it was a letter. Yes they are not sposed to support a particular religion and they are not. I celebrate the NDOP because i think the USA needs it and needs ALOT of it.

quicksilver how are they not supporting a particular religion, excluding other religions doesn't count? read the website, it for Christians, they claim they promote the event by volunteer, why not really make it a national day of prayer, tell everyone to volunteer and promote prayer in their choice of practice?

Originally posted by Quicksilver
give me a break. First off there is notin in the constituion about the seperation of the church and state it was a letter. Yes they are not sposed to support a particular religion and they are not. I celebrate the NDOP because i think the USA needs it and needs ALOT of it.

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion...

and y does the US need prayers? it's just some words that people mumble and hope that whatever they mumble will come true without them doing anything but mumbling.

Originally posted by silQ
and y does the US need prayers? it's just some words that people mumble and hope that whatever they mumble will come true without them doing anything but mumbling.

I can tell your not a religious person.

I think NDOP would be ok, but ww is right, we should acknowledge all religions rather than just Christianity.

Still, people refuse to learn the foundation of this nation and continue to follow what they prefer and what the left tells them.

Were you to lern a bit about your country's history, you would find out that at the request of Congress, the same Congress that just the day before passed the 1st Amendment, proclaimed a day of "public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God."
Among other things James Madison said in reference to this (Madison is considered the Father of the Constitution), stated that religion is, in fact, the basis of government.
John Jay, the first chief justice to the Supreme Court, said, "Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."
Were you to do any reading on George Wasahington (Not a sanitized, history revised book but an objective reading on his life and leadership) you would find that in regard to mentioning God and having a firm Christian belief, he would put George Bush to shame.

The fact of the matter is this nation was, indeed, founded to be a Judeo-Christian nation, the 1st Amendment did not do away with God but only meant that the federal government would not select one denomination (Or sect, as they referred to them) as the official denomination of the land, and this nation was not to be without firm and clear morals, ethics and principles.

No nation has ever been created with ideaas of relative morality and the like, but many nations have fallen into that trap and many of them have become despotic and dangerous nations (Study a bit of Hitler and his wicked influence). Considering this and considering the power the U.S. has, you'd better pray that what many want for this nation never comes to fruition.

The conspiracy is not that some want this nation to get back on the right path, the conspiracy is the fact that for the last few decades history has been rewritten to exclude God and twist the original meaning of the 1st Amendment and hide the real truth of this nation's heritage from the people to the point where so many do not know the truth when they are told.

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne
The conspiracy is not that some want this nation to get back on the right path, the conspiracy is the fact that for the last few decades history has been rewritten to exclude God and twist the original meaning of the 1st Amendment and hide the real truth of this nation's heritage from the people to the point where so many do not know the truth when they are told.

this may be a first for me, but I totally agree with your above statement TC, in the past 20 years or so in which I have been paying attention, the fact that this country is founded on Judeo-Christians beliefs and favor this side has been significantly downplayed and many including myself were fooled into thinking otherwise. National Prayer Day which excludes others religions but the above mentioned finally cleared up the confusion for me.

WorldWatcher, there is a lot of hanky-panky going on with this nation's government. The religion issue is but one part, and all of it is directed at stripping the citizen of their rights, everything from gun ownership and free speech to property ownership. Something is truly afoul!