“Blessed are You, God of the universe. You have created us and given us life”, said Rev. Warder before the assembled House of Representatives on Friday.
The right honorable Reverend Oran Warder, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Alexandria, Virginia, offered the following prayer before the official start of business in the House of Representatives on Friday:
“Blessed are You, God of the universe. You have created us and given us life.
Blessed are You, God of this Earth. You have set our world like a radiant jewel in the heavens and filled it with beauty and hope.
Blessed are You, God of these United States of America, for all the lessons of our past, for all that remains for us to do.
Blessed are You, God of truth and justice. Guide the men and women of this House of Representatives. Grant them insight, courage, compassion, and imagination. Protect them from corruption and arrogance, and grant that we whom they seek to serve may give them the support that they need.
Increase our trust in one another. Strengthen our quest for justice, and bring us to unity and a common purpose.
Blessed are You, God of the universe, and blessed are we, Your people.
Amen.”
Source: Congressional Record, date November 15, 2013 http://thomas.loc.gov