January 16, 2005

“Let us Pray”

I am one of those who very much believe that prayers work
We say “grace” at our dinner meal at home every day, and often at other meals. Now certainly they do not work all the time, especially when I think
at all of our meals we pray for peace in the world---one day perhaps. Let us pray.

At the early meetings when the body that met were called the United Colonies of Columbia (yes, it was Benjamin Franklin talking them not into
the next to final vote on the United States of Columbia---Columbus was very popular in those days, although he did want the turkey to be the national bird and not the eagle) a prayer was said at the beginning and the end of each meeting.

Most of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were lawyers, just as the congress and senate is today, and most were either Mason or Episcopalian followed by Presbyterian ( deist meaning a Mason, which was a very popular and influential order in its day, where many early presidents were of this “religion”—Washington was a “free mason” or Master Mason and did not consider himself an Episcopalian.). http://www.usconstitution.net/declarsigndata.html
They also had a minister from each of the various religions say a prayer before and after their meeting. There were Unitarians who did not believe in “Heaven” or “Hell.” George Washington had a prayer said at his inauguration, although he did not regularly attend church, according to his own diaries. http://www.youdebate.com/DEBATES/founding_fathers_religion.HTM

The forefathers were definitely in favor of separating church and state. Most were “foreign born,” meaning came to the new land from a place that saw the Church of England replace the Catholic Church and both churches very powerful in government affairs. In early America, various groups came here for religious freedom, which to them meant their beliefs and practices were the ones and brought their own prejudices with them. They wanted freedom, and at the same time, everyone to follow their religious order or else---thus the witches trials, and many sects that grew in the first part of the 19 th century.

This site gives the religious background and nature of each of the presidents
of the United States:
http://www.geocities.com/peterroberts.geo/Relig-Politics/PresOrder.html

So the forefathers aware of these politically active people, and remembering the Church of England, wanted to make sure in this new country there would be no “religious group” power. They certainly were not against prayer, God, and most were active in the Masonic order (Charles Carroll was the only Roman Catholic.) Records indicate that a Jewish Rabbi also gave an invocation at several of the meetings, as well as other sects of Christianity.

If you also read the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, they certainly were in favor of the separation of church and the state, but they never thought that praying was included in these documents.

To the United Baptist Churches in Virginia in May, 1789, Washington said that every man "ought to be protected in worshipping the Deity according to the dictates of his own conscience."

This should certainly cover President George Bush being able to have a prayer said at his inauguration, which I am sure will include the hope for world peace. Let us pray.