How Christian Will Rick Warren's Prayer Be?
Sunday December 21, 2008
Now that Rick Warren has been selected to deliver the invocation (and a firestorm has ensued), there's another important question: what kind of prayer will he deliver? Billy Graham, who has done quite a few of these, would usually close...
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Well, he could get creative and say, "Moloch, accept these sacrifices..."
That would liven things up.
Indeed. Thought you might be interested in this piece I wrote on the Huffington Post, that makes reference both to your Interview with Rick Warren and comments you made concerning the interview.
Thanks for all your excellent work.
Bob Ostertag
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-ostertag/why-gay-marriage-is-the-w_b_152717.html
Religious liberty is all important. Do not stand for intolerance.Your liberty could be next!
He could always revert back to the Founders and close with references to Providence, Divine Being and Creation's God; language that is acceptable to almost everyone except the most radical non-theist. It also happens to be the language used most in American Civil religion. (see Robert Bellah)
The question isn't how Christian will the prayer be, but how inclusive?
Warren wants us to hold his hand and walk together despite our beliefs being different than his own. I've done that for many, many years, and the fundamentalists beliefs have just continued to become more radical as the years have flown by. I've had conversations for years with them and got absolutely no where. There is nothing left for myself but to comepletely ignore them from now on. I wouldn't touch one finger of a pastor that believes as he does, let alone walk holding hands with him. He's not a friend to GLBT, not a friend to women of America or even in his church, from what I read in the LATimes this morning, and not a friend to any Jewish person or anyone else who doesn't subscribe to his extreme beliefs. I'll have to read in the news what he preaches to America in his inuguration prayer, as I won't be watching it until I'm sure he is finished.
hootie1fan asks a very valid question. Just how inclusive will Rick Warren's invocation be as he prays for those within our nation who, because of Warren's beliefs, will be forced to the sidelines.
Being a woman who is not religious, but Spiritually grounded, I find myself and my sisters, who form the majority of citizens of this country, essentially left with a choice that is not necessarily palatable.
Rick Warren is a biblical literalist who would not allow a woman to stand offering an inaugural invocation in a leadership position over male citizens, let alone the entire nation. He is of the belief that feminism, or a woman's right to the fullness of living, has harmed women by devaluing their traditional role as nurturers. Therefore, it becomes imperative to Warren that men become the headship of women because an ancient text tells him so.
From what I understand, these are just some of the beliefs of the man who has been asked to pray for our nation and all its inhabitants during the inauguration in the first month of the new year. A time when we should be starting to heal from years of national and global injury, we must now spend time and energy attempting to thwart the darts of this man's extremist beliefs. I do not accept or support Warren's Christian exclusionary god. I do not accept or support this god that considers every person to be sinful and less-than if outside of the narrow boundaries of the Christian system of belief.
I therefore reject Pastor Warren's inaugural invocation with hope that many of those sidelined citizens of our country stand firm in the fullness of their humanity.
A decent article on how others have done the invocation, thank you Mr. Waldman, for that information. It is worthy of note. Also worthy, is that the article neithers supports nor contradicts the President-elects choice for the invocation. For whom did Rick Warren vote, anyway? Does the only thing Obama's choice does is show there are far right anti-intellectual religious zealots in both parties? Does the Democratic Party have the same horrific "base" as the Republican Party? Is Rick Warren Obama's Sarah Palin?
Warren, though, cannot be true to his faith because he has none, he is not a Christian. Just because he calls himself one, does not a Christian make. He is an store bought evangelical, nothing more. Charity does not wash away the sin of murder. Rich Warren is a murderer, anyone who negates the worth, the being, the soul of another is a murderer.
The most interesting and surprising was Rick Warren's praying in the name of the Muslim “Esa”, who, in their story is neither divine, nor died on the cross for us:
http://www.liturgy.co.nz/blog/invocations-barak-obama/296
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