Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Elie Spitz on 18 March 2004
Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=29054
open_content_license: Public Domain (17 U.S. Code §105 - Subject matter of copyright: United States Government works) Date: 2020-01-10
Last Updated: 2025-03-29
Categories: 🇺🇸 United States of America, Opening Prayers for Legislative Bodies
Tags: 108th Congress, 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, Operation Margarethe, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, U.S. House of Representatives, תחינות teḥinot
Excerpt: The Opening Prayer given in the U.S. House of Representatives on 18 March 2004. . . .
Content:
Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Elie Spitz, Congregation B’nai Israel, Tustin, California
Sponsor: Rep. Tom Lantos, (D-CA)
Date of Prayer: 03/18/2004
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Opening Prayer Given by the Guest Chaplain:
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Master of the Universe,
may You bless our great country
and its leaders.
May You give them,
our congressional leaders,
the wisdom to discern
the path of righteousness.
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Scripture teaches:
“Today,
I place before you
life and death,
blessing and curse.
Choose life.”
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Sixty years ago this day,
the Germans invaded greater Hungary
to oust the government
and begin deportations
of hundreds of thousands of Jews and others.
Many of those who survived
have modeled an affirmation of life
and a passion for justice
in the shadow of tragic loss.
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May You, the Almighty,
guide our congressional leaders
toward affirming life
and pursuing justice
in all that they do.
May they find Your light
despite shadow.
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Infuse their acts
with strength and courage,
memory and wise purpose,
open hearts and outstretched hands.
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אָמֵן׃
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Amen.
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Source(s)
108th Congress, 2nd Session
Issue: Vol. 150, No. 35 — Daily Edition (March 18, 2004)
link: https://chaplain.house.gov/chaplaincy/display_gc.html?id=780
Click to access CREC-2004-03-18-pt1-PgH1231.pdf
Contributor: the Congressional Record of the United States of America
Co-authors:
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Name: the Congressional Record of the United States of America
Bio: 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)
Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Record
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/united-states-congressional-record
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Name: Elie Spitz
Bio: Rabbi Spitz serves Congregation B'nai Israel, Tustin, California. He served as a member of the Rabbinical Assembly Committee of Law and Standards (1994-2004; 2008-2016) and as a Global Justice Fellow for the American Jewish World Service (2016-2017). A graduate of The Jewish Theological Seminary and Boston University School of Law, Rabbi Spitz is the author of three books and many articles dealing with spirituality and Jewish law. He has taught the philosophy of Jewish law at the American Jewish University and taught at the Wilkinson College, Religious Studies Department at Chapman University.
Website: https://www.cbi18.org/people/rabbi-spitz/
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/elie-spitz
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