Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Dr. Raphael Ḥai Melamed on 11 May 1943

Contributor(s):

Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Raphael Ḥai Melamed and the Congressional Record of the United States of America

Shared on:

17 June 2026 under the Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication

Categories:

🇺🇸 United States of America, Opening Prayers for Legislative Bodies

Tags:

78th Congress, 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, U.S. House of Representatives, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, תחינות teḥinot, the Holocaust, World War Ⅱ

Guest Chaplain: Rev. Dr. Raphael Hai Melamed, rabbi, Temple B’nai Israel, Elizabeth, New Jersey
Sponsor: n/a
Date of Prayer: 11 May 1943

Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	O Lord, who art the source of our life and our liberties, we thank Thee for our privilege of meeting here this day as the representatives of a great and free people, dedicated to the task of governing this Nation in wisdom, in justice, and in the spirit of a common faith founded on the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man.
	Grant that this Nation shall forever be free and united; free from tyranny, intolerance, and hate; united in purpose, good will, and the preservation of our democratic way of life.
	Vouchsafe Thy strength to the armed forces of our Nation and our allies in battle. Bring speedy victory to them and to all who, on their farms and factories, in their homes, schools, and churches, battle on the home front to destroy the forces of wickedness in the world.
	Grant redemption to the victims of the inhumanity of our foes, lingering in concentration camps and behind ghetto walls. Bring them from darkness unto light and from slavery unto freedom.
	Bless Thou the Chief Executive of our Nation and all who with him share the responsibilities of leadership in these days of crisis. Endow them with strength and wisdom commensurate with the burdens of war, and grant that under their guidance our Nation shall lead mankind into freedom and security.
	Help us to establish on earth Thy kingdom and Thy sovereignty so that we may behold in our day the era visioned by our ancient prophets, when “nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” (Isaiah 2:4; Micah 4:3)

This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the fifth month of the first session of the 78th US House of Representatives, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 89 part 3 (11 May 1943), p. 4196.

Source(s)

Prayer of the Guest Chaplain – Raphael Hai Melamed (House of Representatives, 11 May 1943), p. 4196

Aharon N. Varady (transcription)

Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)

Raphael Ḥai Melamed

Raphael Ḥai Melamed (1883-1948), born in Ḥeḇron, Ottoman Palestine, was a Sefaradi Conservative movement rabbi and scholar in the United States. He immigrated with his parents to the United States in 1892 and received his semikhah in 1909 from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. While pursuing graduate studies at Dropsie College in Philadelphia, he began serving Congregation Ohel Jacob in 1911. From 1916 to 1918 he taught at Gratz College after which, he took the pulpit at the Spanish and Portuguese Congregation in Montreal. His dissertation at Dropsie College, published in 1921, was The Targum to Canticles according to six Yemen Manuscripts. In 1923, he moved to Elizabeth, New Jersey where he took the pulpit at B’nai Israel Congregation. As guest chaplain before the US House of Representatives in May 1943, he explicitly mentioned "the victims of the inhumanity of our foes, lingering in concentration camps and behind ghetto walls." We know little else about the life and career of Rabbi Melamed. If you can add a relevant detail or image of Rabbi Melamed to this short bio, please contact us.

the Congressional Record of the United States of America

The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress, published by the United States Government Printing Office and issued when Congress is in session. Indexes are issued approximately every two weeks. At the end of a session of Congress, the daily editions are compiled in bound volumes constituting the permanent edition. Statutory authorization for the Congressional Record is found in Chapter 9 of Title 44 of the United States Code. (wikipedia)

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו׃ (תהלים צ:יז) · "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." (Psalms 90:17)

Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Dr. Raphael Ḥai Melamed on 11 May 1943

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