Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. Senate: Rabbi Max M. Landman on 26 January 1961

Contributor(s):

United States Congressional Record and Max M. Landman

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16 January 2024 under the Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication

Categories:

Opening Prayers for Legislative Bodies, United States of America

Tags:

20th century C.E., תחינות teḥinot, 57th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, U.S. Senate, 87th Congress

Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Max M. Landman, D.D., Temple Beth El, West Palm Beach, Florida
Date of Prayer: 26 January 1961
Sponsor: n/a

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Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	Eternal Father, Creator and destiny of all flesh, from the depth of my heart I thank Thee and bless Thee for the spiritual honor accorded to me to stand in this citadel of justice to invoke Thy blessing upon this healthy, strong, intelligent body, called the U.S. Senate.
	Through Thy will, O Lord, we have noble and loyal men and women representing the welfare of our great country. These leaders are the watchmen over the precious and priceless gift we possess, the Constitution of the United States of America. Bless them, O God, at this time, when the world is sick at heart, when civilization lies dormant, when mankind is still groping in the darkness to find Thy light, which can illumine the path for all on this earth.
	Bless the President of our great Republic; bless the Vice President and the members of the Cabinet. Give them wisdom equal to their physical strength, and courage equal to their responsibilities, so that they, too, will close their link of leadership in this great insoluble chain of liberty, justice, and freedom. May they lead us and all men to live a life as it was ordained by Thee from the time of the creation of man.
	May we never permit our enemies from without and from within to destroy our faith and our democratic way of life.
	May our blessed country, America, continue to be the champion and the leader of all mankind toward true nobility and just peace.
	Bless our churches and synagogues; may they always tower above man’s material life. May the human race be truly aware that there is one universal God, who created us all, so that Thy divine light will flood the world with true brotherhood, and the sound of the Liberty Bell shall echo to the four corners of the earth, calling all men to walk side by side to the mountain of the Lord, and there build the temple of love, of faith, and of true peace.
	All this we ask in Thy holy name, and in the name of our children’s children, and those not yet born, who will call us a blessing, too, for laboring in unity and for our sacrifices in behalf of Thee and Thy beautiful world. Then we shall joyfully chant aloud, “Hallelujah, praised be the Lord.”^[1] Psalms 146-150. Yehi Sheim Adonoy Mevorach Leolom Voed.^[2] An adaptation of the communal exclamation in the Ḳaddish, albeit in Hebrew rather than Aramaic. A combination of Psalms 113:2 and “em>barukh shem kavod malkhuto le’olam va’ed.” Blessed be Thy name from this time forth and forevermore. barukh shem kavod malkhuto le’olam va’ed Amen.

This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered near the beginning of the first session of the 87th US Congress. The source images of the prayer were copied by Howard Mortman and shared via his @CongressRabbi Twitter account. All credit to Howard Mortman for his research in digging up this prayer. Unfortunately, neither the source images nor his tweets provide an exact citation reference to the volume, issue, and page number of the Congressional Record in which the prayer was published. If you know, leave a comment, or contact us.

Source(s)

Prayer of the Guest Chaplain (Max Landsman 26 January 1961)

Notes[+]

Notes
1	Psalms 146-150.
2	An adaptation of the communal exclamation in the Ḳaddish, albeit in Hebrew rather than Aramaic. A combination of Psalms 113:2 and “em>barukh shem kavod malkhuto le’olam va’ed.”

. Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication . 1.0 . Universal .

“Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. Senate: Rabbi Max M. Landman on 26 January 1961” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.

United States Congressional Record

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)

Max M. Landman

Rabbi Max M. Landman, D.D., served Temple Beth El in West Palm Beach, Florida. If you have any more information about him, help us bring honor to him by contributing to this short biography. (Contact us.)

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "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