Date of Prayer: 21 February 1967
Sponsor: n/a
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הַמֵּאִיר לָאָֽרֶץ — תְלַמְּדֵנוּ חֻקֵּי חַיִּים — אוֹר חָדָשׁ עַל־צִיּוֹן תָּאִיר |
Light of the Universe:
In the words of our daily prayer we implore Thee, Ha-meir la-arets[1] The incipit to the liturgy in the weekday Shaḥarit following the blessing “oseh shalom uboreh et hakol” (in the blessings prior to the Shema). — telamdaynu ḥuqei ḥayim[2] Adaptations of the text “חֻקֵּי חַיִּים כֵּן תְּחָנֵּנוּ וּתְלַמְּדֵנוּ” in the liturgy of the blessing “ahavah rabah” (in the blessing prior to the Shema). — Or ḥadash al tsiyon ta’ir.[3] From the end of the liturgical formula of the blessing “yotser or” in Shaḥarit (in the blessings prior to the Shema). “Enlighten us in the laws of life. Make a new light to shine on Zion for the benefit of all.”[4] A translation riffing upon the liturgical text. |
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On the threshold of George Washington’s Birthday,
we lift our hearts again in gratitude for the birth of this Nation under his tutelage and Thy providence, a nation and leaders cradled in Thy Holy Writ. |
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May we ever be mindful
of the moral imperative to match physical strength with spiritual power. |
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We thank Thee, O Lord,
that in our day, upon the soil sanctified by Thy Holy Word, Israel has been privileged, under Thy providence, to have its rebirth in its ancient homeland, and that America has had a great role in that wondrous dispensation. |
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Grant that every passing year
may add a strand to the spiritual kinship uniting these two democracies, each flowering in its own tradition. |
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May Thy supreme blessing
of “shalom,” peace, encompass men and nations everywhere, evermore. Amen. |
This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the second month of the first session of the 90th US Congress in the Senate, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 113, part 3 (1967), page 4036.
Five days after this prayer was delivered in Congress, the first interfaith religious service in Israel, the “Prayer for World Peace”, was held at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Conducting services were the Reverend Charles Greco, Roman Catholic Bishop of Alexandria, Louisiana; Rabbi Samuel Natan of the Jeshurun Synagogue of Jerusalem; and Sheik Taufiq Asaliya, the Qadi of Jaffa. From 5–10 June 1967, the “Six-day War” reshaped the geopolitical region. On the same day seven years later (on 21 February 1974), the last Israeli troops on the west bank of the Suez Canal departed on schedule, after having controlled both sides of the canal since 1967.
Source(s)
Congressional Record, vol. 113, part 3 (1967), p. 4036
Notes
| 1 | The incipit to the liturgy in the weekday Shaḥarit following the blessing “oseh shalom uboreh et hakol” (in the blessings prior to the Shema). |
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| 2 | Adaptations of the text “חֻקֵּי חַיִּים כֵּן תְּחָנֵּנוּ וּתְלַמְּדֵנוּ” in the liturgy of the blessing “ahavah rabah” (in the blessing prior to the Shema). |
| 3 | From the end of the liturgical formula of the blessing “yotser or” in Shaḥarit (in the blessings prior to the Shema). |
| 4 | A translation riffing upon the liturgical text. |
