Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Karl Applbaum on 29 April 1963
Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=55683
open_content_license: Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication date_src_start: 1963-04-29 date_src_end: 1963-04-29 languages_meta: [{"name":"English","code":"eng","standard":"ISO 639-3"}] scripts_meta: [{"name":"Latin","code":"Latn","standard":"ISO 15924"}] Date: 2024-04-28
Last Updated: 2025-04-25
Categories: 🇮🇱 Yom ha-Atsma'ut (5 Iyyar), 🇮🇱 Medinat Yisra'el (the State of Israel), 🇺🇸 United States of America, Opening Prayers for Legislative Bodies
Tags: 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., 88th Congress, English vernacular prayer, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, prayers of military chaplains, U.S. House of Representatives, תחינות teḥinot
Excerpt: The Opening Prayer given in the U.S. House of Representatives on 29 April 1963 in the event of the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel. . . .
Content:
Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Karl Applbaum of Avenue M Jewish Center, Brooklyn, New York
Sponsor: n/a
Date of Prayer: 29 April 1963
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Source (English) |
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Heavenly Father,
who discerns all and knows all,
who guides the destinies of men,
who created man in His own image
and made him a partner in creation,
who endowed man with wisdom
and privileged him to shape his own destiny,
unto Thee we pray.
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We invoke Thy blessings
upon the deliberations
of this great legislative body,
which has been charged
by the millions of citizens of our great democracy
to implement and put into practice our ideals
of brotherhood,
freedom,
and the dignity of man.
Inspire them with the wisdom
to choose the path that leads to righteousness.
Grant that their decisions shall be wise
and their efforts fruitful.
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The people of these great United States
have always demonstrated their dedication
to the ideals of the brotherhood of man
and the fatherhood of God,
upon which our great Nation is founded.
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The Jewish people, the world over,
shall be eternally grateful
that at a critical juncture in human history
fifteen years ago,
it was this august body
which gave its support and recognition
to the reestablishment in Thy Holy Land
of an abode for the harrowed and harassed children of Israel.
Today our people reap the fruits of the presence
of a great fortress of freedom in the Near East,
the State of Israel,
which is dedicated to the same ideals
which we hold sacred.
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Fulfill for all mankind
the words of an ancient prayer of Rabbi Ami,
“May your lips speak knowledge and preach righteousness,
and may your steps ever hasten
to the coveted goal of peace
which is Thy name.”
Amen.
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This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the fourth month of the first session of the 88th US Congress in the House of Representatives, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 109, part 6 (29 April 1963), page 7221.
Source(s)
Congressional Record, vol. 109, part 6 (29 April 1963), p. 7221
Contributor: Aharon N. Varady (transcription)
Co-authors:
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Name: Karl Applbaum
Bio: Rabbi Dr. Karl Applbaum (1910-1974), was the founder and associate rabbi of the Avenue M Jewish Center, Brooklyn. In 1945, was on the faculty of Mesifta Talmudical Seminary, Hebrew Parochial High School in Brooklyn, New York, teaching Social Science. He served as a chaplain in the Army until his retirement from the active reserve as a full colonel in 1970. He wrote Laws Governing the Reading of the Torah, Prophets, and Megillos Esther in the Synagogue, published in the Tiqun La-Qor'im he-Ḥadash (Rabbi Asher Scharfstein, 1950).
Website:
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/karl-applbaum
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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: Aharon N. Varady (transcription)
Bio: Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)
Website: https://aharon.varady.net
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady-transcription
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Title: Flag_of_the_United_States_House_of_Representatives.svg
Caption: Flag of the United States House of Representatives
