Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Linda Motzkin on 11 July 2000

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Date: 2020-06-08

Last Updated: 2025-02-02

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

Tags: 106th Congress, 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., English vernacular prayer, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, U.S. House of Representatives, תחינות teḥinot

Excerpt: The Opening Prayer given in the U.S. House of Representatives on 11 July 2000. . . .

Content:
Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Linda Motzkin, Temple Sinai, Saratoga Springs, New York
Sponsor: Rep. John E. Sweeney (R-NY)
Date of Prayer: 07/11/2000

One Minute Speech Given in Recognition of the Guest Chaplain:

Mr. SWEENEY. Mr. Speaker, I have the distinct pleasure to welcome Rabbi Linda Motzkin of the temple Mount Sinai in Saratoga Springs, New York, as she offered today’s opening prayer.

Rabbi Motzkin was ordained by the Hebrew Union College Judiciary Institute of Religion in 1986. She has a BA in Hebrew Language from the University of California at Berkeley and an MA in Hebrew Letters from HUC-JIR.

Prior to her arrival at Skidmore in 1986, she taught the Judaic Studies department at the University of Cincinnati.

She is also coauthor of two Hebrew language textbooks, the First Hebrew Primer and Prayerbook Hebrew: The Easy Way.

In addition to serving as Skidmore’s Jewish chaplain, she is co-rabbi, together with her husband, Rabbi Jonathan Rubenstein, of Temple Sinai of Saratoga Springs, a Reform Jewish congregation.

Rabbi Motzkin has a close relationship with all three local Jewish congregations and works to foster connections between Skidmore students and the local Saratoga Springs community, as well as all of those who live in New York’s 22nd Congressional District.

Mr. Speaker, I am extremely pleased to have her here and welcome her participation today.

Contribute a translation Source (English)

Opening Prayer Given by the Guest Chaplain:

In the Talmud, we are taught
that every human being should be cognizant of three things,
“know from whence you came,
and where you are going,
and before whom in the future you will be called to account.”[1] A maxim of Akabyah ben Mahalalel, cf. Pirkei Avot 3.1. 

Honorable Representatives,
you who serve in this House know from whence you came,
from every geographic region across this great Nation.
And you know that the decisions you make in this Chamber
will shape where we all are going,
all the men, women and children whom you represent,
the people of every faith, race and background
who comprise the great tapestry of humanity
that is the source of our country’s strength.

And so we pray to the Eternal God:
May these men and women
who serve their country
be mindful
that, in the future, they will be called to account,
not only before the citizens they represent,
and not only in the eyes of history,
but before You, the God of all.
May they be granted
in their deliberations on this day
a measure of Your wisdom
and Your compassion.
אָמֵן׃
Amen.

Source(s)

106th Congress, 2nd Session
Issue: Vol. 146, No. 88 — Daily Edition (July 11, 2000)

Click to access CREC-2000-07-11-pt1-PgH5740-3.pdf

 

Notes

Notes
1 A maxim of Akabyah ben Mahalalel, cf. Pirkei Avot 3.1.

Contributor: the Congressional Record of the United States of America

Co-authors:

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