Thursday of last week was the National Day of Prayer throughout America. The towns I drove through seemed to be making quite a deal of it.
Several pastors whose stuff I read, however, seemed worried that this might be the last such day. They fear President Obama might not authorize such an official observance in the future. They worry about that.
And that stuns me into silence. Well, almost. But not quite.
It ranks alongside the uppance of my dander when I read that Nashville’s Vanderbilt University is requiring campus religious organizations to allow anyone of any beliefs or no beliefs to hold leadership positions. (Note: all I know on this issue is what I read in www.bpnews.net. This is the Baptist Press’s website.)
What in the world is going on here, I wonder. Have we (they) lost our sanity?
When I hear pastors fearing that the president of this nation–or any nation–might not make a day of prayer official, and this might result in the demise of the annual observance, I find myself thinking, “You need the endorsement of the president before you call your people to prayer?”
Do you need the okay of the national leader before you get together with other congregations in your community to pray? How did you arrive at that?
I have several comments about that.
Do our prayers mean more when they arrive in Heaven if the President okayed them?
Are citizens more likely to attend community prayer gatherings if our national leader announces them?
Wouldn’t you rather have a hundred people show up voluntarily to pray in a parking lot than a thousand on the courthouse steps just because it’s an official calendar event?
Imagine if the President actually were to remain silent on the subject–no Day of Prayer is recognized or called for–and, even so, multiplied thousands of congregations across America continued the practice on their own.
Wouldn’t that be infinitely better?
Personally, I’m skeptical of presidential religion no matter who practices it. When Richard Nixon occupied the Oval Office, instead of going to church on Sundays, he began inviting preachers to hold worship services in the East Room. Did they come? You’d better believe they came. They were so honored to be the presidential preacher on those Sundays, they couldn’t wait to add this to their resumes. Their congregations back home practically swooned at the recognition.
It’s enough to make one gag.
If what we”ve heard about Nixon is true, the man was literally gloating at the way he was manipulating these preachers and conning their churches.
It brings to mind the Old Testament practices (see the Book of Judges) when families would have their own priests, their lapdogs, it would not be far-fetched to say.
The more we liberate our Christian faith from requiring anyone’s official endorsement, the better off we will be. I don’t want foreigners thinking that America and the Christian faith are one and the same. I love this country, but I love my faith in Christ far more.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is infinitely larger than any government, no matter how noble its founders or how sacred its history.
As for Vanderbilt, this university has sent a strong message to the Christian churches having connections to their campus: We don’t need you.
I would love to see parents of prospective students deciding that, “Well, then, we won’t be sending our kids there.”
I would love to see well-heeled donors sending Vanderbilt a message that, “You apparently are not the faith-based institution we thought you were; we’ll be giving our money elsewhere.”
That alone would speak their language.
Those are the only two voices Vanderbilt–and hundreds of other increasingly secular institutions of higher learning–hear today: contributions and student enrollment. (Such educators scoff at the politicians, make jokes about community leaders, and ignore protests of parents and students.)
It’s not like students have no other choices on where to attend college.
It’s not like wealthy donors have no other institutions needing their generosity.
The weakest voices on the Vanderbilt campus are the religious organizations. Some of them are protesting, are asking the administration to relent, and in so doing, appear as beggars underneath the tables of the rich. They get no respect.
The administration will have to see student enrollment declining and gifts decreasing before it wakes up. The trustees then will call an emergency meeting and deal with this issue.
Is that going to happen?
Don’t hold your breath.
This is the manner of a fallen world: The culture is increasingly encroaching on territory once held securely by the Church. It’s happening in marriage, in lower education as well as higher, and in a thousand other areas.
So, let the churches meet every first Thursday of May for their day of prayer. Let them call their communities to gather in public squares or private lots and lift their united voices to the Lord of Heaven and Earth to have mercy. And let them do so whether or not any leader–from the President down to the lowliest alderman–gives a rip or a nod of approval.
Let God’s people on campuses practice their faith as both Christians and Americans. They are free and beholden to no academic administration. The only hold a Vanderbilt has on their organizations is the official status it can confer along with a few privileges. It might do the Christians well not to have it or need it.
It’s possible for the Lord’s people to depend on governments, on political leaders, and on higher-ups in institutions too heavily for our own good.
Depend on it too strongly and we collapse when it’s withdrawn.
Better to ignore the endorsements of the officials and take little notice when same is withdrawn.
The Church has never needed Caesar’s approval and historically, began to grow steadily weaker the moment it received it.
(Postscript: I notice in a followup Baptist Press article that the Baptist Campus Ministry on the Vanderbilt campus has decided to opt out on receiving the imprimatur of the university. Good for you, BCM. The article says the Tennessee Baptist Convention owns the BCM building located in the center of the Vanderbilt campus. Hmmm.)
Excellent comments of which I totally agree. As a member to the Tn Bapt. Executive Board, I just recieved a letter from Randy Davis,Executive Director, to all board members telling us that BCM will not agree to this requirement and for the first time in many years there may not be an offical Baptist presence there in the Fall.
A sad sign of the times. Unfortunately Vanderbilt is one of the private unversities with huge amounts in their endowment funds, even ranking with the Ivy League Schools. They, apparently, don’t care if Christians like it or not.
Right on about the subject of the President and his lack of support for National Day of Prayer. Since when does any office dictate when and for whom we can pray. Thanks for your article!
I found the President’s Proclamation declaring May 3rd a National Day of Prayer most adequate and supportive. Though I fail to see why anyone would need it.
NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER, 2012
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
Prayer has always been a part of the American story, and today countless Americans rely on prayer for comfort, direction, and strength, praying not only for themselves, but for their communities, their country, and the world.
On this National Day of Prayer, we give thanks for our democracy that respects the beliefs and protects the religious freedom of all people to pray, worship, or abstain according to the dictates of their conscience. Let us pray for all the citizens of our great Nation, particularly those who are sick, mourning, or without hope, and ask God for the sustenance to meet the challenges we face as a Nation. May we embrace the responsibility we have to each other, and rely on the better angels of our nature in service to one another. Let us be humble in our convictions, and courageous in our virtue. Let us pray for those who are suffering around the world, and let us be open to opportunities to ease that suffering.
Let us also pay tribute to the men and women of our Armed Forces who have answered our country’s call to serve with honor in the pursuit of peace. Our grateful Nation is humbled by the sacrifices made to protect and defend our security and freedom. Let us pray for the continued strength and safety of our service members and their families. While we pause to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice defending liberty, let us remember and lend our voices to the principles for which they fought — unity, human dignity, and the pursuit of justice.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 3, 2012, as a National Day of Prayer. I invite all citizens of our Nation, as their own faith directs them, to join me in giving thanks for the many blessings we enjoy, and I call upon individuals of all faiths to pray for guidance, grace, and protection for our great Nation as we address the challenges of our time.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
BARACK OBAMA
Well said, Joe.
We “Christians” sound so whinny sometimes when we talk like we have to have permission to pray or gather or speak of our faith.
Thanks again.
I don’t think prayer to our Lord Jesus Christ can be stopped by laws made against Christianity. All you have to do is read of the Christians who are martyred because they refuse to deny our Lord and Savior. I read about them regularly. Will it come to that here? I don’t know. Maybe if it did, we’d see a lot more commitment by those who are on the fence now. We have ignored Biblical Principles far so long in this nation that it is very hard to call us a “Christian Nation” any longer. Many people don’t attend church so the only way we will evangelize them is in our businesses, on the streets, where we work out, where we socialize with our friends. By the way, every Christian should have some friends who are not Christians. I know I do. The four walls of the church are full of hypocrites but out of the those four walls is where the rubber meets the road and either you are the ‘salt and light’ there or you are part of the problem. I think the election of our President has been a good thing. I think it has woken up a segment of our population to the fact that we are only one generation away from removing God from our society (He has been removed from a lot of places already-just look around). Regardless of who is President or King or Dictator, in countries that have one, we should pray for our leaders and ask God to empower them with wisdom from the God of the Universe, Jesus Christ, who I believe has ‘the government of the world’ on His shoulders. If they don’t listen, it is their problem. We may not see it in the ‘principalities and powers in high places’ and many times they seem to work against us, but they serve at His Authority and it is our responsibility to pray for them. And it does seem sometimes, Christians are seen as part of the problem and not part of the solution, which, I’m not so sure that is not a valid argument. Especially when there is little difference between the observed ‘Saved’ and the ‘Unsaved’ actions. But, when our leaders do things which are contradictory to God’s Word, then Christians should stand up and say ‘that is wrong’. And when officials displease God, sometimes, the prayer said in Psalm 109:8 is appropriate. Not advocating for any one, just saying sometimes it is appropriate or God would not have said it.
Well said, Joe.
Such good points. National day of Prayer can be equated to school prayer. No one can stop citizens from praying nor can students be stopped from praying. Prayer can be commicated to God at any time any place.
I have thought about this at various times since I heard it and unless the organization dictates who the leaders are then it is a popular election of the members. A college organization from the beginning could require for membership; attendance, public service, and morality requirements. Which is what the college organization should have required in the first place. That way “ringers” could not be brought in to vote a non-Christian into a leadership position and non-Christian people who adhere to the requirements would be exposed and hopefully hear the Gospel and accept Christ. But I might be naive in my thinking. But what has always bothered me is why a non-Christian would want to join a Christian organization. College is such a close environment and there are very few secrets kept secret. As far as presidents, governors, or leaders endorsing something, it is nice if they do, especially if they are sincere. But Christians don’t need a “credibility seal” to practice their faith in God. Our credibility comes from Jesus Christ and Him only. Christians do not need to be told to pray or not pray. We don’t need a reminder or stimulation to pray. Sincerity requires us to be internally motivated to worship and pray because of Who He is and what He has done for us.
Just my thoughts.
Dr J