Public Prayer and President Obama: A Kerfuffle?

This Plainfielder wonders sometimes whether Roger Williams, the Baptist preacher and co-founder of Rhode Island, is not right after all.

As every school child used to know, he was a staunch defender of religious toleration and the separation of church and state. Perhaps less well known is that he left the congregation he founded shortly afterwards, saying 'God is too big to be housed under one roof'.

Roger Williams is always in the back of my mind when public prayer is offered in a civic setting -- whether it is at Plainfield's City Council meetings or at the inauguration of America's first African American president.

As a Christian, I have no problem addressing prayers to God through Jesus Christ. But I know that having it done in official settings leaves many of my friends and fellow-Plainfielders who are not Christian excluded.

On the other hand, to-Whom-it-may-concern prayers can seem limp and lifeless.

As President Obama's inauguration approached, the matter was put on the front burner by the media (an example here). Was Rick Warren an offensive choice? Why was there only one pray-er? Was it a conspiracy that gay Bishop Robinson's prayer at a pre-inaugural event was dropped from the NPR feed?

Oh, my! Oh, my!

The day came. Rick Warren acquitted himself reasonably well (see the full text of his prayer here), though some religious conservatives were upset by his reference to Jesus not only by his Jewish and Christian names, but by his Islamic name, 'Isa' and others critiqued his sermonizing tendencies.

My kind of prayer service came the NEXT day, at the National Cathedral.

First, you were there because you counted yourself among believers and wanted to offer prayers for the new President.

Second, it was TRULY ecumenical -- and more, it was interfaith -- including Jewish, Muslim and Hindu officiants. (An aside: Richard Nixon's 1973 swearing-in had a Baptist, a Catholic and a Greek Orthodox; Ronald Reagan's 1985 ceremony included a Protestant, a Catholic and a Jew, as did Harry S. Truman's 1949 inaugural. A tradition that was lost after Reagan. See more here and here.)

Third, did you notice how prominent WOMEN were? Including the preacher, the head of the Islamic Society of America and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church? Many have noted that only men were picked by the inaugural officials for the civic ceremonies.

Lastly, it was a sensitively INCLUSIVE, JOYOUS and SPIRIT-FILLED service. Read the service leaflet carefully to see what I mean (see here -- PDF).

Roger Williams had an opinion. He thought these sorts of things blasphemous.

I think not.

Perhaps we should conclude instead that God is too big to be housed under the roof of Roger Williams' opinions.

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• Christianity Today: "Text of Rick Warren's Inaugural Prayer"
• National Prayer Service: "National Cathedral home page" "Links to leaflet (PDF) and webcast"
• Inaugural Prayers: "The Ultimate Archive"
• Charles C. Haynes: "What should be the role of civil religion?" -- In today's Courier.
• Wall Street Journal: "The Power of Prayer" -- As America became more diverse, Inaugural pray-ers became less so.

-- Dan Damon