Prayers For The President
Stories
Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit
Series VI, Cycle C
Object:
I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone -- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
-- 1 Timothy 2:1-2
No doubt, sometimes we are not quite sure how to approach this instruction. If you like the current administration and the way things are going, no problem. If not, well.... A few years ago, one of my friends asked, "Can we just pray for regime change?" Truth be told, you can pray anything you want.
My beautiful daughter, to whom this volume is dedicated, had a bedtime prayer one night when she was in kindergarten -- having heard in school of the destruction of the Amazon rainforest and the danger it posed for the environment, she prayed, "Dear God, those people who are cutting down the rainforest, please kill them." If regime change is your heart's desire, then of course you can pray for it. Remember though, prayer is not a labor-saving device -- no matter which way you are praying, your prayers commit you to working toward the end you have in mind.
Our text says to pray for those in authority. To be honest, this is probably easier for you and me to hear, regardless of our politics, than it was for those early Christians. The leaders referred to in scripture were pagans, and, for the most part, pretty nasty ones at that.
It really is extraordinary to trace how all through its early days, days of bitter persecution, the church regarded it as an absolute duty to pray for the emperor and his subordinate kings and governors. "Fear God," said Peter. "Honor the emperor" (1 Peter 2:17). Which emperor? How about Nero, that monster of cruelty who used Christians as human torches to light his garden parties?
Tertullian, one of the leaders of the early church, insists that for the emperor we pray for "long life, secure dominion, a safe home, a faithful senate, a righteous people, and a world at peace. We pray for our rulers," he wrote, "for the state of the world, for the peace of all things and for the postponement of the end. The Christian is the enemy of no man, least of all of the emperor, for we know that, since he has been appointed by God, it is necessary that we should love him, and reverence him, and honor him, and desire his safety, together with that of the whole Roman empire. Therefore we sacrifice for the safety of the emperor." In AD 311 the Emperor Galerius actually asked for the prayers of the Christians and promised them mercy and indulgence if they prayed for the state.1
In the Book of Common Worship, we find this prayer.
O Lord, our governor, your glory shines throughout the world. We commend our nation to your merciful care, that we may live securely in peace and may be guided by your providence. Give all in authority the wisdom and strength to know your will and to do it. Help them remember that they are called to serve the people as lovers of truth and justice; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.2
What should we be praying right now? After all, there are some very divergent agendas among us. Christians in our day are certainly not a monolith -- we are conservatives, we are liberals, we are anti-war, pro-war, we are pro-choice, pro-life, or whatever. Some want to pray desperately that one candidate will win, some want to pray desperately for another. To be honest, some want to pray for "none of the above." So saying, it is clear that there indeed are some things about which all can agree.
For example, in Isaiah, chapter 1, we hear God saying, "The multitude of your sacrifices -- what are they to me? I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats" (Isaiah 1:11). Then God turns thumbs down on fancy religious processions: "This trampling of my courts" (Isaiah 1:12). Forget the extra commitment offerings and the fragrant incense, the special services of worship and celebration. "I cannot bear your evil assemblies," God says.
Perhaps the most radical announcement of all comes when God even rejects prayer: "When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen." Why? "Your hands are full of blood" (Isaiah 1:15). Your walk should match your talk.
Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
-- Isaiah 1:16-17
Bingo! These are more than general instructions -- the admonitions about seeking justice mean to care for the powerless members of the society: the oppressed, the orphan, and the widow. How about we pray that our leaders have the wisdom and gumption to deal with these justice issues for the weakest among us, and that this be a national priority? Does anyone have a problem with that? I hope not -- after all, God says I don't want to hear your worship, I'm not listening to your prayers, unless you do this.
You might figure this would be a no-brainer, but in the political atmosphere of our day, it has run into difficulty. Why? Simply because the impoverished underclass has no political clout. It was Mark Hanna, the nineteenth-century Ohio political boss and US Senator, who said, "There are two things that are important in politics. The first is money, and I can't remember what the second one is." That is why we have tax breaks for the wealthiest among us and no health insurance for millions of poor American children. And one political party or the other cannot be blamed for that, because both are guilty.
So, can we agree to pray that our leaders prioritize and pursue these justice issues? Fine. Just remember, prayer is not a labor-saving device. If we pray that prayer, we are committing ourselves to support our leaders in that pursuit, to encourage them in that direction, and to call them to account when they drift away from the task.
Honestly, the only way these biblical priorities will become the priorities of our leaders is some good ol' down-home conversation. They are going to have to sit down and talk to one another. Can we pray that they might do that? As we all know, our nation has been so bitterly divided along partisan lines that not a lot of conversation has been occurring. About all we are seeing is a mud bath and slime spray. That our leaders actually sit down and talk to one another, in my estimation, is an urgent prayer.
Prayers for the president -- the reason for them is the same now as it was for those prayers for the Emperor two millennia ago: "That we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy 2:2). The decisions that our leaders make have a direct bearing on the kind of lives we lead.
In the period immediately following the death of Franklin Roosevelt and the accession of Harry Truman to the presidency, it was widely reported that Mr. Truman felt inadequate for the job. In one of his informal conversations with White House reporters, he said tearfully, "Boys (and it was all boys then), if you ever pray, pray for me now." Well, Harry is not the only leader who needed it, they all did, and they all do.
Finally, to keep all this in perspective, Lynne Hough, a hospital chaplain, wrote on the internet about an elderly patient whose mental acuity was being evaluated. A standard question, in such evaluations, is to ask the patient who is the president of the United States. When they asked this particular woman who the president was, she replied, "Honey, I'm a 101 years old and I don't care who the president is!"
"Needless to say," Lynne concludes, "she was labeled as 'oriented and appropriate.' "1
Say prayers for the president. After all, no matter who he or she is, they need all the help they can get.
____________
1. William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible, CD-ROM edition (Liguori, Missouri: Liguori Faithware, 1996). Used by permission of Westminster/John Knox Press.
2. Book of Common Prayer, Daily Prayer (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993), pp. 816-817.
3. Quoted by Carlos Wilton on The Immediate Word, an online resource for preaching, http://www.sermonsuite.com/the-immediate-word.html.
-- 1 Timothy 2:1-2
No doubt, sometimes we are not quite sure how to approach this instruction. If you like the current administration and the way things are going, no problem. If not, well.... A few years ago, one of my friends asked, "Can we just pray for regime change?" Truth be told, you can pray anything you want.
My beautiful daughter, to whom this volume is dedicated, had a bedtime prayer one night when she was in kindergarten -- having heard in school of the destruction of the Amazon rainforest and the danger it posed for the environment, she prayed, "Dear God, those people who are cutting down the rainforest, please kill them." If regime change is your heart's desire, then of course you can pray for it. Remember though, prayer is not a labor-saving device -- no matter which way you are praying, your prayers commit you to working toward the end you have in mind.
Our text says to pray for those in authority. To be honest, this is probably easier for you and me to hear, regardless of our politics, than it was for those early Christians. The leaders referred to in scripture were pagans, and, for the most part, pretty nasty ones at that.
It really is extraordinary to trace how all through its early days, days of bitter persecution, the church regarded it as an absolute duty to pray for the emperor and his subordinate kings and governors. "Fear God," said Peter. "Honor the emperor" (1 Peter 2:17). Which emperor? How about Nero, that monster of cruelty who used Christians as human torches to light his garden parties?
Tertullian, one of the leaders of the early church, insists that for the emperor we pray for "long life, secure dominion, a safe home, a faithful senate, a righteous people, and a world at peace. We pray for our rulers," he wrote, "for the state of the world, for the peace of all things and for the postponement of the end. The Christian is the enemy of no man, least of all of the emperor, for we know that, since he has been appointed by God, it is necessary that we should love him, and reverence him, and honor him, and desire his safety, together with that of the whole Roman empire. Therefore we sacrifice for the safety of the emperor." In AD 311 the Emperor Galerius actually asked for the prayers of the Christians and promised them mercy and indulgence if they prayed for the state.1
In the Book of Common Worship, we find this prayer.
O Lord, our governor, your glory shines throughout the world. We commend our nation to your merciful care, that we may live securely in peace and may be guided by your providence. Give all in authority the wisdom and strength to know your will and to do it. Help them remember that they are called to serve the people as lovers of truth and justice; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.2
What should we be praying right now? After all, there are some very divergent agendas among us. Christians in our day are certainly not a monolith -- we are conservatives, we are liberals, we are anti-war, pro-war, we are pro-choice, pro-life, or whatever. Some want to pray desperately that one candidate will win, some want to pray desperately for another. To be honest, some want to pray for "none of the above." So saying, it is clear that there indeed are some things about which all can agree.
For example, in Isaiah, chapter 1, we hear God saying, "The multitude of your sacrifices -- what are they to me? I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats" (Isaiah 1:11). Then God turns thumbs down on fancy religious processions: "This trampling of my courts" (Isaiah 1:12). Forget the extra commitment offerings and the fragrant incense, the special services of worship and celebration. "I cannot bear your evil assemblies," God says.
Perhaps the most radical announcement of all comes when God even rejects prayer: "When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you; even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen." Why? "Your hands are full of blood" (Isaiah 1:15). Your walk should match your talk.
Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.
-- Isaiah 1:16-17
Bingo! These are more than general instructions -- the admonitions about seeking justice mean to care for the powerless members of the society: the oppressed, the orphan, and the widow. How about we pray that our leaders have the wisdom and gumption to deal with these justice issues for the weakest among us, and that this be a national priority? Does anyone have a problem with that? I hope not -- after all, God says I don't want to hear your worship, I'm not listening to your prayers, unless you do this.
You might figure this would be a no-brainer, but in the political atmosphere of our day, it has run into difficulty. Why? Simply because the impoverished underclass has no political clout. It was Mark Hanna, the nineteenth-century Ohio political boss and US Senator, who said, "There are two things that are important in politics. The first is money, and I can't remember what the second one is." That is why we have tax breaks for the wealthiest among us and no health insurance for millions of poor American children. And one political party or the other cannot be blamed for that, because both are guilty.
So, can we agree to pray that our leaders prioritize and pursue these justice issues? Fine. Just remember, prayer is not a labor-saving device. If we pray that prayer, we are committing ourselves to support our leaders in that pursuit, to encourage them in that direction, and to call them to account when they drift away from the task.
Honestly, the only way these biblical priorities will become the priorities of our leaders is some good ol' down-home conversation. They are going to have to sit down and talk to one another. Can we pray that they might do that? As we all know, our nation has been so bitterly divided along partisan lines that not a lot of conversation has been occurring. About all we are seeing is a mud bath and slime spray. That our leaders actually sit down and talk to one another, in my estimation, is an urgent prayer.
Prayers for the president -- the reason for them is the same now as it was for those prayers for the Emperor two millennia ago: "That we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy 2:2). The decisions that our leaders make have a direct bearing on the kind of lives we lead.
In the period immediately following the death of Franklin Roosevelt and the accession of Harry Truman to the presidency, it was widely reported that Mr. Truman felt inadequate for the job. In one of his informal conversations with White House reporters, he said tearfully, "Boys (and it was all boys then), if you ever pray, pray for me now." Well, Harry is not the only leader who needed it, they all did, and they all do.
Finally, to keep all this in perspective, Lynne Hough, a hospital chaplain, wrote on the internet about an elderly patient whose mental acuity was being evaluated. A standard question, in such evaluations, is to ask the patient who is the president of the United States. When they asked this particular woman who the president was, she replied, "Honey, I'm a 101 years old and I don't care who the president is!"
"Needless to say," Lynne concludes, "she was labeled as 'oriented and appropriate.' "1
Say prayers for the president. After all, no matter who he or she is, they need all the help they can get.
____________
1. William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible, CD-ROM edition (Liguori, Missouri: Liguori Faithware, 1996). Used by permission of Westminster/John Knox Press.
2. Book of Common Prayer, Daily Prayer (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993), pp. 816-817.
3. Quoted by Carlos Wilton on The Immediate Word, an online resource for preaching, http://www.sermonsuite.com/the-immediate-word.html.
