c. 2006 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Calling the United States “a nation of prayer,” President Bush marked the annual National Day of Prayer with an interfaith ceremony at the White House on Thursday (May 4).

“On this special day, we give thanks for the many ways that America has been blessed, and we acknowledge the Almighty, who is the source of these blessings,” the president told a crowd of about 150 representing Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddhists.

The White House event was one of many across the country that involved millions of Americans, from Mount Rushmore to Capitol Hill, for the 55th annual observance.

“The Almighty is pleased when Americans turn to him in a posture of prayer and repentance,” said Shirley Dobson, chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force and wife of James Dobson, the founder of the Colorado-based Focus on the Family ministry.

Bush thanked Shirley Dobson for organizing the events at the White House and beyond. The 45-minute ceremony in the East Room included the recitation by Atlanta author Henry Blackaby of the 2006 “Prayer for the Nation” he wrote at the request of her task force. Contemporary Christian vocalist Rebecca St. James performed “Honor God,” the theme song for this year’s celebration. At the end of her rendition, Bush and others gathered for the ceremony sang the words of the chorus with her.

More than one speaker praised Bush for his faith, with Shirley Dobson noting that he not only supports the corporate celebration of the national prayer day, but “makes a daily intercession a priority in his own life.”

Bush himself turned to the example of a previous president who had linked the nation to faith.

“During the darkest days of the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress and George Washington _ I call him the first George W. _ urged citizens to pray to give thanks and to ask for God’s protection,” he said, drawing laughter and applause from a roomful of religious leaders, military chaplains and cabinet secretaries. Those invited ranged from Archbishop Demetrios, primate of the Greek Orthodox church in America to Lodi Gyari, a Tibetan Buddhist who serves as a special envoy to the Dalai Lama.

“In the stillness and peace of prayer, we surrender our will to God’s will, and we learn to serve his eternal purposes,” the president said.

But he added that freedom unites U.S citizens.

“In America, we are free to profess any faith we choose, or no faith at all,” he said. “What brings us together is our shared desire to answer the call to serve something greater than ourselves.”

The National Day of Prayer was established by Congress in 1952 and is observed each year on the first Thursday in May.

Church-state watchdog groups questioned the appropriateness of the annual prayer event.

“This merger of religion and politics is exactly what our nation’s founding fathers hoped to avoid,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Washington-based Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

In recent years, the American Humanist Association has encouraged people to observe the alternative National Day of Reason on the same date.

“Our secular government has no business calling on people to express their beliefs in one way over another,” said Roy Speckhardt, executive director of the Washington-based association.

The official 2006 Prayer for the Nation by Henry Blackaby follows:

2006 Prayer for the Nation

By Henry Blackaby

Oh Heavenly Father, You have made Yourself known to us as a nation by Your mighty works throughout our history. From the beginning, You have been with us through many wars and conflicts; Your right arm has saved us. We have been amazingly and graciously blessed.

Today, we confess our sin of not responding to Your right to rule in our lives and our nation. Too often we have despised and rejected Your will while imposing our own, and we are now facing the consequences of our disobedience.

Draw us back to Yourself that we may return to Your ways once again. Without You we can do nothing. You have promised that if we honor You, You will once again honor this great nation.

That is our fervent prayer. For Your honor and glory we pray, Amen.

_ Source: National Day of Prayer Task Force

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