National Day of (Yawn) Prayer

I was fully prepared to yawn my way through another National Day of Prayer. Forgive me for not sharing the ecumenical enthusiasm so many others seem to have.
I find prayer to be a very personal and real connection to the God I believe in. I know Him as Jesus Christ. That is my personal belief. I didn’t get the concept from the government. I didn’t ask the government’s permission to have it. It is my faith, and I exercise my belief in it on a daily basis, and would do so with or without the government’s consent.

This year’s National Day of Prayer has been met with the typical nonsense of the politically correct crowd. U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb recently ruled that it was unconstitutional, that it violates the First Amendment. The Pentagon invited, then disinvited Franklin Graham, the son of Billy Graham, to be a speaker at its event on the National Day of Prayer. Why? Because he called Islam a bad religion after 9/11 when Muslims blew up the Twin Towers to punish the Satan America.

This government does not acknowledge that we are a Christian nation. Obama himself said, “We are no longer a Christian nation.” And you know that with the scrutiny of the ACLU and other anti-Christian organizations this White House will do nothing that might be interpreted as favoring religion. In fact, in light of Crabb’s ruling, perhaps Obama won’t even sign the proclamation naming a National Day of Prayer.

Make no mistake about it, a National Day of Prayer has to be inclusive of all religions. In many meetings around the country stages will enjoy Muslims, Rabbis, Christians, and Hindus, and maybe even Buddhists to speak and lead in prayers.

No thanks. Prayer is not a public ceremony to me. And I’m hard headed enough to believe that prayer to a non-existent god is a waste of time and energy. Prayer to a statue is meaningless. Prayer to “something” is pointless. Forgive me for yawning.

But I did get excited the other day when Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia thumbed his nose at the ACLU, and reversed his predecessor’s ruling that Chaplains could not pray in Jesus name. McDonnell decided that if you believe in Jesus, you’re entitled to pray in His name. Oh goody. Now chaplains have permission to pray to the God they actually believe in.

Don’t worry, the attorney general will probably file suit to force the Chaplains back to mediocre prayer to nothing. Even some Christians are whining that the governor has opened the door for people to pray to Allah, or even, gasp, Satan.

Good! If someone believes in Allah, he ought to be able to pray to Allah, and I can sit silently by while he does. Even he worships Satan, and wants to pray to him, let him. It’s his right. My God isn’t frightened by it.

So, anyway, next Thursday is National Prayer Day. If you haven’t prayed since last year, by all means grab this opportunity.