National Day of Prayer angers Christians and atheists

by Amy Judd | May 7, 2009 at 08:36 am

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Today is the National Day of Prayer in the United States, but the White House has planned only a muted observance of the event, which has angered Christians and even an atheist group, that wanted the event to be canceled completely.

The day started back in 1952 and became the first Thursday in May in 1988; it was traditionally when the President of the U.S asked Americans across the country to pray. President Obama however has not issued any public notices of prayer, like George Bush did before him.

The National Day of Prayer Task Force criticized Obama, saying that last year over 2 million Americans attended prayer events, and that he should have arranged something for this year.

"We are disappointed in the lack of participation by the Obama administration," said task force chairwoman Shirley Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family founder James Dobson. "At this time in our country's history, we would hope our President would recognize more fully the importance of prayer."

The Freedom From Religion Foundation has filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Wisconsin, saying that the day violated the division of church and the state.
31 Republican members of Congress have joined to fight the lawsuit, but the 12,000 members of Freedom From Religion are determined to get the day declared unconstitutional, saying the state cannot force prayer proclamations on people.

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Samir Joshi

at 09:02 on May 7th, 2009

Hey... I didnt know there was a day like this! Interesting!

albertacowpoke

at 09:07 on May 7th, 2009

Another issue that divides America, as if there weren't bigger fish to fry.

Yellow Guitar

at 09:13 on May 7th, 2009

Nobody is forcing anybody to do anything. Maybe the Christians should shut their mouths and pray. Maybe the atheists should shut their mouths and not pray. And maybe everybody should just get a life and stop trying force feed their views on everybody else. No need to waste taxpayers money on a court case.

Amy Judd

at 10:31 on May 7th, 2009

Yes, I also feel like the court case is just really unnecessary.

AlvarezGalloso

at 09:12 on May 7th, 2009

Great story.

Roy C

at 10:31 on May 7th, 2009

Here is an interesting book which has some interesting sections on prayer- Jacob Needleman's Lost Christianity where he focuses on the difference between emotion ( a defense) and feeling (a psychological reality).

To spiritualize yourself and develop soul, you must learn to get behind the defensive emotions and get to the real feeling. Real feeling is an expression of the Self. Hanging on the cross would mean dealing responsibly with one's pain, as opposed to "acting out", which would be the way a person got lost reacting to an unfelt feeling.

Needelman is a professor of philosophy at the very secular San Fran State. He was raised Jewish and is a student of Gurdjieff, who held similar positions about developing soul, and end result of self-remembering, an exercise used to bring about intense experiences of conscience.

It is the soul’s birth in the human that must be aimed for. That is the prerequisite for the true Christianity which is now lost. Needleman argues fundamentally from a totally pessimistic standpoint: true Christianity can no longer be found (p. 88f); modern men and women’s prayers have no effect (p. 95); and Christendom has "no force, no power to bring about change" (p. 119). The presupposition for that judgment seems to be Gurdjieff’s moralistic view that "a Christian is a man who is able to fulfill the Commandments" (p. 170). Gurdjieff, therefore, calls humans "pre-Christian" (p. 171). Needleman thinks a change in that condition can occur only by reviving "the esoteric tradition. (p. 187), because "the symbol guides the search" (p. 188). It is the symbol’s power, which issues from the idea of the soul, that must be restored. The esoterica are "ideas, practices and methods of living that support the process of awakening" (p. 122).

But Needleman realizes that is only possible for a very few informed people; namely, those who have "the spark of God within them" and whose goal must be "to sever their bondage to the world and its people, to remember their real origins and escape from the death-dealing pleasures and pains of the created universe in which they find themselves" (p. 201). Although those are Father Sylvan’s words, I wonder if they aren’t also Needleman’s. In the final analysis, only "these special individuals" interest him. "There are two species of human beings; one at home in this darkened, deceptive and evil world; the other an ‘alien race’ thrown into this world" (p. 203). Those two races are in all of us, and all people are called to catholicism. Gnosis, if we receive it, shows us our lack of response to that call (p. 204).

Amy Judd

at 10:32 on May 7th, 2009

Thanks for this added information.

Amy Judd

at 11:46 on May 7th, 2009

I agree with him that there can be no 'true Christian' in the Biblical sense of the word anymore due to the fact that really no one lives by the ten commandments, well I suppose I shouldn't say that; I don't know anyone who lives by them or even attempts to, and I imagine it must be a very difficult undertaking to live exactly by those rules in our damaged society.

It must be like he says, that if someone was to try they would have to completely sever themselves from the world. It's interesting that he describes people attempting this kind of undertaking as an 'alien race', as I imagine they must feel like that in this current world, and most of our society looks upon people like that as not really belonging here.

It's sad really, that those who try to live by a much sterner set of rules are often treated the worse by everyone else.

Just some of my thoughts...

Paschen

at 15:53 on May 7th, 2009

The Amish try rather hard to live by the ten commandments and only the ten commandments.

Amy Judd

at 15:58 on May 7th, 2009

That's true, I didn't think about them, you're right.

Roy C

at 10:41 on May 7th, 2009

When he says "catholicism", with that lower-case "c", he means universal religion, which was the original aim of the Catholic (Universal) Church.

Right now, I would say that the most universalist teachers that we could consult were Jung, Gurdjieff and Joseph Campbell, among others.

The term, universalist, has been used to describe the eclectic Christianity of the US's Founding Fathers. Interesting, as something like this had to be at the basis of the conception of human rights.

QueensHart

at 16:26 on May 7th, 2009

Thank You for the article. Needleman is one of my favorite authors in deed! Jung is at the top. Gurdjieff helps to really explain how to live Christianity..he gets between the lines of the Bible maybe. John Dourley who wrote "The Illness We Are" and "Strategy for a Loss of Faith" are my favorites that helped to get me out of Legalism (and the 12 step program Al anon).

I have posted my ideas about prayer in the article about the Christian woman that believes marriage should be only between a man and a woman.. Serious prayer is to be done within oneself ..alone for Self.

Yes I suppose we do group prayer in organizations but I honestly think as the Christ said"go into the closet" ..don't do it for show...and now to do it where it is publicized is certainly an agenda that does seem to lose it's sacredness. I guess for collective goals to be met then it is not really a bad idea. Our country was founded on Christian principles.

I know the 12 steps always close on the hour with the Lord's Prayer. It feels solemn and "holy". It is usually a small circle and it is very seriously done. "Wherever two or three are gathered".. also implies that more possibly brings the "angels, Christ, the holy spirit " to the midst so that kinda negates my theory. I learn as I write. Why I have a hundred or more journals I catch myself in unhealthy thinking by writing quickly. Some posters here I believe might do well to recognize when they learn a new way to frame their perspective and opinions. Taking a good look at your thoughts is a good thing when you can learn to be painfully honest. Not being honest with one's SELF is the real root of addictions for one thing.

Karen Hatter

at 18:39 on May 7th, 2009

Since the chairwoman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force is the wife of the founder of Focus in the Family, which promoted a doomsday scenario letter, Letter from 2012 in Obama's America, laying the blame for the end of America as we know it at the feet of an Obama administration, I think I see why the administration may have not been enthralled with hosting the event.

duo

at 08:56 on May 8th, 2009

I think religion is a completely personal and individual affair. People who pray should do so continuously. Those who don't should not care as much as they seem to about other people's worship practices.

There are many commemorative celebrations and holidays on the calendar that I don't partake in, but it would be ridiculous for me to protest other folks celebrating whatever they want. I don't eat frogs, but damed if I will get signs and stand outside a restaurant to protest other folks eating them. I would not raise money for an anti-frog-eating movement. It appears to me that some people who call themselves atheists are not really atheists at all. Many so-called atheists may be like a college friend I had. He fell out with God and became an "atheist" when his mom did not get healed of cancer and she died. He actually used to curse at this God he did not beileve could hear him.

No one fights so hard against something they don't even believe exists, like some folks who claim to be atheists. I think they just have a bone to pick with God.

Religion is here to stay, and so is atheism. A national day of prayer is a nice idea, but there are now so many different religions in America that we are probably past the point when we can unite in prayer without controversy. Therefore, a day set aside to be spiritually uplifting and unifying can instead become a point of division. I am a Christian, but I say President Obama did well to downplay the National Day of Prayer. God hears folks pray even without fanfare.

Yellow Guitar

at 12:48 on May 8th, 2009

Excellent response duo. In my opinion this whole thing is a tempest in a teacup. I'd add this slight modification to your last line ..."God hears folks pray only when it's done without fanfare." Blowing a horn about it (or inviting the media) is counterproductive if you're worshipping the same God Jesus talked about.