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;)
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;)
Bless him, bless us
..Bless us with discomfort – at the easy, simplistic "answers" we've preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.
Bless us with patience – and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be "fixed" anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.
Bless us with humility – open to understanding that our own needs must always be balanced with those of the world.
Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance – replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity, we are stronger.
Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion's God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.
And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of President of the United States.
Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln's reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy's ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King's dream of a nation for ALL the people.
Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in these times.
Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.
Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership, there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States.
Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.
Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters' childhoods.
And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we're asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand – that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.
~Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson, at the Lincoln Memorial Inaugural Concert 1/18/09
(thanks to my brother who sent this along via my mom)
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Reader Comments (10)
Amen, amen, amen!
Thanks for sharing that. I especially love "help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters' childhoods." and "We know we ask too much of our presidents." Because we do.
Thanks for posting that Annie.
We do ask too much, and I love the part about being blessed with humility and to balance our needs with those of the worlds. Nothing gets under my skin more then the prideful "best & greatest" nation talk which seems to boast entitlement, pride, and enmity, and which seems to be completely void of the ability to listen and learn from those deemed inferior to the "best & greatest".
great sentiments.
so...I don't think we have pictures from the ball, we were just so swept up in the moment...I'll look, but I have a sinking suspicion it is one of those memories that can only be described
That brings tears to my eyes. What a beautiful sentiment - I love it. Thanks so much for passing it on to us.
should we add this to GBH's list of "BE's" ?
Wow. That was really, really, great.
This is beautiful. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Oh, and I got your tweet. I haven't figured out how to answer if succinctly in tweet form. But, its been good. I'll do a blog post. Thanks for asking!
That one was a little bit better than the actual inaugaration prayer, huh?