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Sponsor: Rep. Barratt O’Hara (D-IL)
Date of Prayer: 1 July 1957
Mr. O’HARA of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank the ever-gracious and beloved Chaplain, the Reverend Dr. Bernard Braskamp, for inviting Rabbi Morton M. Berman to be with us on the opening of the session on this, the 1st day of July. Rabbi Berman, who served with great distinction and bravery in World War II, has been the spiritual head of one of our large synagogues in the city of Chicago. He is leaving Chicago and his friends there to make his permanent residence in Israel. I understand he is sailing in the next day or two. We all feel privileged, I know, to have Rabbi Berman here with us today and to share in the spiritual uplift of his prayer opening the session of the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States and in his presence on the floor. May God’s blessing attend him in all the days ahead in his work of dedication to the greatness and goodness of the State of Israel. In Chicago we shall miss him sorely, but our prayers shall be with him always.
Mr. BOYLE. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. O’HARA of Illinois. I yield to the gentleman from Illinois.
Mr. BOYLE. Mr. Speaker, it is a profound honor and privilege to join with the other Members of Congress from Illinois in hailing Rabbi Morton M. Berman as he leaves our great city of Chicago to embark upon a new life, a highly significant mission in the tiny State of Israel. His leaving is a profound loss not only to Chicago but to Illinois and the whole United States. Nowhere will you find a man who exemplifies that adage that people should walk among tall men better than in his individual case. Through the years Rabbi Berman has been a leader of the Jewish community not only of Chicago but of the United States. Many and varied have been his wonderful contributions. In the battle for men’s minds in this critical and revolutionary era as it turns to the Middle East, that region is getting a wonderful spokesman because there is no man that believes more in the spirit of charity, of love and brotherhood than our departing friend. We salute him and wish him well. In his new endeavors may he continue to be esteemed and loved as he meets a new challenge and a new opportunity for good.
Mr. ROOSEVELT. Mr. Speaker, the beautiful words of prayer spoken for us today by Rabbi Berman are typical of his deep inspiration. Those of my colleagues from Illinois who speak words of praise for Rabbi Berman today do so from firsthand knowledge of his great contributions to his community and his Nation. As one who also has had the privilege of knowing personally of Rabbi Berman’s work I welcome this occasion to join with all his friends in wishing him every blessing in his new work overseas. May peace and justice for all men crown his efforts.
Mrs. CHURCH. Mr, Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. O’HARA of Illinois. I yield to the gentlewoman from Illinois.
Mrs. CHURCH. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor and a privilege to find myself a Member of the House of Representatives at a time when Rabbi Berman comes to say hail and farewell. No man in the Chicago area has done more to hold high those ideals and principles upon which this Nation stands. We wish him Godspeed and send with him our prayers for great service and extended life. We know that in Israel as in this country he will make his work and his life conform to and enhance these same ideals. May we accept the responsibility of keeping them high in our own thoughts and actions, as we in legislating seek to bring peace and harmony to this troubled world.
| Contribute a translation | Source (English) |
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God of our fathers, we ask Thy blessing upon this assembly, men and women dedicated to the making of the laws of our great Nation. We pray that they may always be filled with an awareness of the ideals on which this Nation rests. | |
As we approach the Day of Independence, our hearts are filled with the recollection of the sacred values upon which this Nation rests, upon the concept of equality of all men and of the right of all men to the enjoyment of those rights which God affords us and which our Nation guarantees to all the people. | |
May the leaders of our Nation be ever conscious of their responsibility to keep America great— great not alone in material things, but in those blessings of the spirit, in justice and compassion, in freedom and in peace. | |
May the work of your hands and the thoughts of your mind enable us to keep America foremost in the struggle to build a just and free world. Amen. |
This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the seventh month of the first session of the 85th US House of Representatives, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 103 part 8 (1 July 1957), page 10691.
Source(s)
Congressional Record, vol. 103, part 8 (1 July 1957), p. 10691
“Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Morton M. Berman on 1 July 1957” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.
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