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Why I hate the National Day of Prayer

J

jonny

Well-Known Member
They call it the "National Day of Prayer" but don't allow members of the 4th largest church in the nation to participate. That's all there is to it. I think they should do away with the whole thing. Ever since a few years ago when the organization told members of the LDS church that they could not pray at the "National Day of Prayer," I see the entire thing as way too political.

Happy Belated National Day of "You Can't Pray With Us"
 
Green Gaia

Green Gaia

Veteran Member
Oh, I didn't realize it was all organized like that. I just thought everyone was supposed to pray.

Yeah, that is stupid.
 
Jaymes

Jaymes

The cake is a lie
jonny said:
The organization that sponsors the local events won't let any "non-Christian" groups participate. When they informed the local group that LDS members couldn't pray the interfaith group cancelled the entire event.

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGGL,GGGL:2005-09,GGGL:en&q=national+day+of+prayer+mormon
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What a bunch of crud. Why not just call it "National Day of What-We-Deem Christian Prayer"? It'd be a way more appropriate name. :banghead3
 
dawny0826

dawny0826

Mother Heathen
jonny said:
They call it the "National Day of Prayer" but don't allow members of the 4th largest church in the nation to participate. That's all there is to it. I think they should do away with the whole thing. Ever since a few years ago when the organization told members of the LDS church that they could not pray at the "National Day of Prayer," I see the entire thing as way too political.

Happy Belated National Day of "You Can't Pray With Us"
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I wasn't aware that LDS were told by whichever organization you're referencing that they couldn't participate. That's unacceptable. And I can understand how you see this as being something political.

That really stinks.

It's my personal belief that every day should be a day of prayer and I don't really see a need for a national day of prayer, especially if it makes people of your faith feel unwanted or unaccepted...seems to defy the purpose.
 
ChrisP

ChrisP

Veteran Member
Well... we can always have a national day of Shrub throwing... Might even catch on and become a college level sport, with Mannequins like the british "Guy"
 
greatcalgarian

greatcalgarian

Well-Known Member
National Day of Prayer and Remembrance
On September 11, 2001, the world was shocked by terrorist attacks on the United States of America. To a grieving nation, President George W. Bush declared September 14 a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance. In responce to this declaration, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held a memorial service in the historic Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah.
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The above is not what you meant by National Day of Prayer? and you are referring to just an organization like the one below?
http://www.ndptf.org/about/index.cfm
 
J

jonny

Well-Known Member
That was something different. Each year the U.S. has a "National Day of Prayer" on May 3rd. It is organized by the "National Day of Prayer Task Force." The reason why MANY religions are excluded is because they do not accept some Lausanne Covenant or something. I know that Muslims are also excluded from participating.

http://www.ndptf.org/home/index.cfm

The National Day of Prayer was designated by the US Congress as a day when ALL Americans, regardless of their religion, should pray. The task force was organized as a non-governmental agency to coordinate the events on this day.

The National Day of Prayer that article is referring to was a special thing after September 11. It wasn't organized by the task force that organizes the annual event.

I just don't think it's appropriate to call something a "National" day if it doesn't represent the nation.
 
greatcalgarian

greatcalgarian

Well-Known Member
jonny said:
That was something different. Each year the U.S. has a "National Day of Prayer" on May 3rd. It is organized by the "National Day of Prayer Task Force." The reason why MANY religions are excluded is because they do not accept some Lausanne Covenant or something. I know that Muslims are also excluded from participating.

http://www.ndptf.org/home/index.cfm

The National Day of Prayer was designated by the US Congress as a day when ALL Americans, regardless of their religion, should pray. The task force was organized as a non-governmental agency to coordinate the events on this day.

The National Day of Prayer that article is referring to was a special thing after September 11. It wasn't organized by the task force that organizes the annual event.

I just don't think it's appropriate to call something a "National" day if it doesn't represent the nation.
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So why don't we forget about the May 3 and adopt Bush's date of Sept 14. Then everyone can perform their own prayer on that day, organize any event they like, and ask the task force to go and fly kites??
 
greatcalgarian

greatcalgarian

Well-Known Member
Incidentally, the event organized by this task force just exclude LDS, but include all others like Hindus, Muslim, Falun Gong etc? Or this task force is organizing event only for the Christian sects??
 
J

jonny

Well-Known Member
greatcalgarian said:
Incidentally, the event organized by this task force just exclude LDS, but include all others like Hindus, Muslim, Falun Gong etc? Or this task force is organizing event only for the Christian sects??
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No, it excludes all those religions also. Sorry I didn't make that clear in the last post.
 
Booko

Booko

Deviled Hen
jonny said:
I just don't think it's appropriate to call something a "National" day if it doesn't represent the nation.
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You're exactly right, Jonny.

They should call it "National Day of Lausanne Covenant Prayer."

sheesh
 
Bishka

Bishka

Veteran Member
That's ridiculous, and not just because I'm LDS. It's because I hate that sort of thing. You can't pray because you supposedly believe in a different Jesus, or you aren't Christian so apparently you don't pray. Baloney my phoney! *Sigh* Life I guess.
 
michel

michel

Administrator Emeritus
Staff member
jonny said:
They call it the "National Day of Prayer" but don't allow members of the 4th largest church in the nation to participate. That's all there is to it. I think they should do away with the whole thing. Ever since a few years ago when the organization told members of the LDS church that they could not pray at the "National Day of Prayer," I see the entire thing as way too political.

Happy Belated National Day of "You Can't Pray With Us"
Click to expand...

Well, Jonny, I can fully appreciate how you must feel.

In your place, I would be tempted to draw up a petition, addressed (presumably to the white house?-sorry, I don't know how it works), signed by every member of your faith, to be delivered on next year's 'National Day of Prayer'.

Considering that this is presumably a Christian initiated 'festival', it is one of the most un-christian forms of behaviour to exclude anyone.
 
Sunstone

Sunstone

De Diablo Del Fora
Premium Member
I notice that Shirley Dobson, wife of James Dobson, heads up an organization that promotes the National Day Of Prayer by helping to organize local prayer events. This seems significant to me because the Dobson's Focus On the Family has in the past been pretty anti-Mormon (the irony of that to me is that Mormonism seems to me at least to be a Christian denomination that promotes the family even more than most do!)

Jonny, I'm not a Christian, as you know, but I find this anti-Mormonism wrong on so many levels that I consider it outrageous.
 
michel

michel

Administrator Emeritus
Staff member
Sunstone said:
I notice that Shirley Dobson, wife of James Dobson, heads up an organization that promotes the National Day Of Prayer by helping to organize local prayer events. This seems significant to me because the Dobson's Focus On the Family has in the past been pretty anti-Mormon (the irony of that to me is that Mormonism seems to me at least to be a Christian denomination that promotes the family even more than most do!)

Jonny, I'm not a Christian, as you know, but I find this anti-Mormonism wrong on so many levels that I consider it outrageous.
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I agree.
 
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