|
Blessings of God
observed in local Day of Prayer
By Bob Robinson
“Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
“He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
“He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;
“His truth is marching on.
“Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
“Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! His truth is marching on...”
And so ended the annual local Day of Prayer that was held Thursday in
front of the Greenville City Building at noon. About 50-60 people
attended the event, which dispersed following the singing of the Battle
Hymn of the Republic.
The local observance of the National Day of Prayer is sponsored by the
Greater Greenville Ministerial Association in cooperation with Mayor
Mike Bower’s office. A number of local officials spoke and offered
prayers for America... the government, legal system, our military and
families, our educational system, the media, churches and more.
Balloons, which had been held throughout the event by those assembled,
were then released as a symbol of unity in God for America and her
institutions.
The National Day of Prayer, established as the first Thursday in May by
Pres. Ronald Reagan, has not been without its controversy.
The Day of Prayer’s origins go back to a mandate from Pres. George
Washington. Pres. Harry Truman declared an annual National Day of
Prayer in 1952, but didn’t specify a date. That was done by Reagan in
1988. In April 2010, the observance was declared unconstitutional by a
Wisconsin federal judge, but the ruling was overturned in April of this
year by a federal appellate court.
It is being challenged once again by the Freedom from Religion
Foundation.
In 2010, Pres. Barack Obama was accused of “cancelling” the National
Day of Prayer. This is a fallacy. According to various sources, there
is no mandate for a public observance by the president. While Pres. G.
W. Bush held public observances, Pres. Bill Clinton did not.
This year, Obama issued his own proclamation for a National observance.
Read it here.
Obama was at Ground Zero on Thursday, while other public officials,
including Ohio Gov. John Kasich, attended public observances in Ohio
and across the nation.
|
