2nd: with all the big “firsts” in this inauguration, i fear many people are missing some of the finer details. like this one: It is widely known that President-elect Obama asked the first openly gay Episcopal Bishop, Rev. Gene Robinson, to be a part of the ceremonies. What is not known as well are the words the Bishop spoke as he delivered the invocation at Sunday’s We Are One inauguration concert. This is one of the moments worth praying for.
“O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will bless us with tears –- tears for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women in many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.”
“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.”
“Please, God, keep him (Obama) safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking far too much of this one. 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. Amen.”
with love,
sabrina
