By Alan Caruba
A very wise cleric once said to me, “Sometimes the answer to your prayer is no.”
For someone who has not stepped into a house of worship for a very long time, except to attend the occasional funeral, it may seem inappropriate for me to be writing about prayer, but the fact is that I pray every day, if by prayer one means a brief conversation with God. For me prayer has always been a great solace, a confirmation of my belief that there is, indeed, a greater power. I take this on faith, but so does everyone, other than atheists.
Thursday, May 3rd is the National Day of Prayer and thus it a good time to examine the power of prayer. Enacted in 1952 by the U.S. Congress, it is traditional for the President in office to issue a proclamation each year recommending prayer.
Its origins date back to George Washington who referred to God repeatedly throughout his public and private life. Just before the Battle of Long Island on August 27, 1776, he told his assembled forces, “The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army.”
The National Day of Prayer has been challenged in the courts by the Freedom From Religion Foundation. The first challenge was unanimously dismissed by a federal appellate court in April 2011, but they are not likely to go away.
I have friends and even some family members who are atheists. I don’t mind that they have concluded there is no God. Many have. I do mind that atheist groups are forever trying through the courts to remove religion from our nation’s life. There would be no America if a bunch of pilgrims did not get on the Mayflower and come here for the express purpose of wanting to pray free of the intervention and persecution of the Crown.
I don’t even argue that religion has not been and is a great source of genuine evil in the world, but that is the work of man, not God.
One need only cast an eye on the roiling Middle East and see how Islam is the source and cause of so much murder it boggles the mind. Islam is far less a “religion” than a cult around the self-anointed “prophet” Muhammad. It is a political contrivance intended to mask its quest for power, for tyranny written large. The very word Islam translates as "submission."
I don’t think we are here to submit to God so much as to partner with Him to live our lives in such a way as to reflect His love for humanity. God is not some distant figure to me, but a power for good that I can tap at will. Prayer puts me at one with the universe. It is a defense against the perversity of ill fortune and an aid to overcoming it.
My thought here is not about religion per se, but the power of prayer in a person’s life. I believe it acts as a guide and underlies what courage we can muster to deal with life’s challenges. I believe it brings great solace to the troubled heart. I think it brings out what Lincoln called “the better angels of our nature” in his first inaugural speech.
There is a wonderful book by Toby Mac and Michael Tait, “Under God”, published in 2004 by Bethany House. If anyone doubts that the Founding Fathers were men of profound faith, they should read this book of the nation’s early history. At one point they tell of Thomas Jefferson returning to the Continental Congress with a draft of the Declaration of Independence.
Jefferson was a deist, a believer in a higher power in the affairs of men, but a bit of a skeptic when it came to religion. When he showed the draft, a delegate from Massachusetts, John Adams, said he would like to add the words, “They are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights.” “Where?” asked Jefferson. “Right after ‘all men are created equal’ said Adams. Benjamin Franklin agreed and suggested adding “with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence.” When they convened on July 1, 1776, they took a vote and the rest, as they say, is history.
So, each in our own way, should give a prayer of thanks for the creation of the United States of America, the greatest experiment in democracy and liberty in the whole of human history.
The National Day of Prayer is also a good day to recall the words of Barack Obama during an April 2008 fundraiser, referring to blue-collar voters. “It’s not surprising that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment to explain their frustrations.” The President has made it a necessity for Americans to cling to their guns and to their religion.
© Alan Caruba, 2012
Comment
Comment by John Wiant on May 2, 2012 at 8:43pm Alan, you are indeed a very smart man. I always feel so awkward when I challenge anything you've written, but........here I go again. That article / like all of yours / was outstanding, but I have to comment on this:
" For me prayer has always been a great solace, a confirmation of my belief that there is, indeed, a greater power. I take this on faith, but so does everyone, other than atheists."
The part I would ask about is: "I take this on faith, but so does everyone...." because, I am wondering:
How do you know everyone simply taking God on faith? How do you know, for example, some people aren't getting fairly fast and accurate feedback of some sort or another from God on a regular basis? :)
Surely, anyone crazy enough to say they "talk" to God in any literal way is going to get locked up, so .... how do you know it isn't happening and those people just aren't repeating any of it? :)
Furthermore, how do you know people aren't getting very specific "signs" of various sorts from God, sometimes very frequently? How do you know there aren't people walking around actually capable of doing minor miracles, who simply don't talk about it to anyone / ever? :)
I believe all of us TEND to assume that what is happening to us personally is very LIKELY to be happening to all of us, and that is generally true to be sure, BUT:
What IF some people have access to a "Magic" that is way out of the ordinary and yet, to them, to those individuals (perhaps who pray ALL the time compared with the rest of us?)....... it is so common as to be just a very intense but natural part of their lives? :)
Yes Allan, by all means we should all pray tomorrow and maybe at least once a day and every day. But let's not forget when we're talking about GOD; by definition : all bets are off. :)
Comment by Floyd W. Van De Vere on May 2, 2012 at 10:30am 
Comment by crystaldebeers on May 2, 2012 at 9:37am God Bless America.
The Picture speaks VOLUMNS!!! That is George Washington,praying to God, for strenght & protection ~ On the Battle-field !! A fantastic choice of photos, for National Prayer Day !
May God bless ALL of Us ;)
Very Nice ;) You may also like: Tha Founder's Key, by Larry Arnn. God is noted 4 times in the Constitution !!
Comment by Chas Jones on May 2, 2012 at 1:07am 1And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
2And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
3Give us day by day our daily bread.
4And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
Search the Scriptures and speak with God, making known your prayers and supplications. Our world, our nation, our elected and appointed officeholders, each and every one of US needs Prayer.
Devote May 3rd as a "Day of Prayer" in your life, and let it be the first day of daily Prayer throughout the remainder of our days.
Pray especially that God will call Obama unto His salvation rather than continuing his march into ever deeper darkness.
Comment by Tony Malanowski on May 1, 2012 at 9:25pm I didn't get the picture either...
Comment by Pat Chadwell on May 1, 2012 at 8:40pm Picture didnt come thru on my computor....
Pat Chadwell, could this be one of the pics you found on the net? It is one of a series found in a Spanish-language newspaper.
Comment by Tony Malanowski on May 1, 2012 at 7:24pm Alan - Very good post! It is essential for groups like Freedom From Religion to wipe out every last vestige of organized religion in an attempt to destroy Faith. It didn't work in the former Soviet Union (Polish Catholics took care of that) and it certainly won't work in the United States. You might be interested in a short piece on the subject I wrote for one of the Study Guides that goes with a DVD I produced about the Battle of Bunker Hill. You can see the page here: http://bunkerhilldvd.com/guide03.html
© 2013 Created by Judson Phillips.
You need to be a member of Tea Party Nation to add comments!
Join Tea Party Nation