Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives: Rabbi Theodore S. Levy on 8 March 1984

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Date: 2024-03-05

Last Updated: 2024-06-01

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

Tags: 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., 98th Congress, 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 8 March 1984. . . .

Content:

Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Theodore S. Levy, Temple Society of Concorn, Syracuse, New York
Sponsor: Rep. Richard Lugar (R-IN)
Date of Prayer: 8 March 1984

Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I am certain I express the gratitude of all of our colleagues for the beauty of the invocation this morning delivered by Rabbi Levy. It is a pleasure, especially because of the close ties the rabbi has with the staff of our colleague from Utah, Senator Orrin Hatch.

As Senators may know, Rabbi Levy’s daughter is on Senator Hatch’s staff, and Senator Hatch has had great interest in the work of Rabbi Levy.

It is a special pleasure to have you, sir, in this Chamber this morning.

Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	O Eternal Presence whom some call God and others by different names, but which mean the same thing— as we enter these hallowed Senate walls we pause for a moment of self-scrutiny.
	As our Nation’s Senatorial representatives let us attempt to reach just a little higher from where we are to where we ought to be. Some among us may call it communion while others call it prayer and yet we all know it means the same thing— aspiration.
	All that we earnestly ask in this moment of prayer is that you accept our thanks for giving us the privilege of serving the people of our great Republic.
	Let us remember Lord of all Senators that we are at best blunderers in our service to this Nation. All too often we are content to be merchants of dead yesterdays when we should be guides into unborn tomorrows. Too often we have placed conformity on old traditions above the curiosity of new ideas.
	So we ask you, O Lord, to again, grant us the privilege of helping to make this world a better place to live because we have been afforded the opportunity to use your gifts of mind and heart wisely.
	May we through this Senate’s efforts attempt to free all humanity from fear, disease, hunger, homelessness and exploitation and enable us to create a world in which the exercise of conscience and the guarantee of humanity’s unalienable rights can be respected and expected.
	Let us never forget that in order to fashion a better world each of us must be able to see in every human being a child of the same god who is heir of the same destiny and may we once and for all recognize that there is only one man on Earth and his name is All Men. There is only one woman on Earth and her name is All Women. There is only one child on Earth and that child’s name is All Children.
	Heal us, O Lord, and we shall be healed. Save us, O Lord, and we shall be saved. Amen.

This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the second month of the second session of the 98th US Congress in the House of Representatives, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 130, part 4 (1984), page 4876.

Source(s)

Congressional Record, vol. 130, part 4 (8 March 1984), p. 4876

Contributor: Theodore S. Levy

Co-authors:

Name: Theodore S. Levy
Bio: Rabbi Theodore S. Levy (April 16, 1926 - November 11, 2004) born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was a Reform movement rabbi in the United States. Levy received a B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh and went on to receive many other degrees, including a Master of Sacred Theology from Temple University, a Master of Hebrew Letters from Hebrew Union College, and an Honorary Doctor of Divinity from Hebrew Union College in 1976. He was ordained a rabbi in 1951 at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio. (As a student, he played the organ for services at the Hebrew Union College.) Levy served at Keneseth Israel in Philadelphia, until 1952 when he left for Ohev Sholom in Huntington, West Virginia where he stayed until 1959. After three years at Temple Israel in Waterbury, Connecticut, Levy was appointed associate rabbi at the Temple Society of Concord in Syracuse, New York, where he became senior rabbi in 1969. Levy was the 3rd rabbi in 110 years at Temple Society of Concord which is the 11th oldest Jewish congregation in the U.S. He remained in Syracuse until his retirement in August 1989. After retirement in 1989, Levy was called to help Congregation Beth Yam, a newly formed congregation on Hilton Head, South Carolina. There, he also played viola in the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. Levy guest lectured at Marshall University in West Virginia. In a groundbreaking move in 1967, Levy became the first rabbi to be appointed to teach at Le Moyne College, a Jesuit institution. For over 20 years he taught Introduction to Judaism and The Development of Jewish Thought, and eventually became the senior professor in the department. He also taught in Canada. In addition to teaching, Levy devoted much of his time to community work and was active in many organizations. One of his early experiences of service came during the time he spent in work camps in Belgium and France through the American Friends Service Committee in 1950. Levy also served as Vice President of the Syracuse Jewish Federation and was active in the Rotary Clubs, where he became a Paul Harris Fellow. Levy became a 32nd Degree Mason. This was achieved at the request of Temple Israel in Waterbury, Connecticut, to open the way for other Jewish men to have the opportunity to also achieve this position in Masonry which, until this time, had been closed to Jews. Of particular importance to Levy were interfaith relations and bridging the gap between those from different backgrounds where he lived. He served on the board of the Syracuse Interfaith Committee on Religion and race. In the mid 1970s, he was named the founding president of the Syracuse Interreligious Council. As member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis for over 50 years, Levy participated in its Interreligious Activities Committee. Levy also brought his interfaith message to the public through his monthly column “From the Rabbi’s Study” which appeared in the Catholic Sun starting in 1973. Throughout his life, Levy was committed to the preservation of Jewish history. He accompanied Jacob Rader Marcus on his 1952 and 1962 archival expeditions to retrace the steps of Jews who were expelled from Spain after 1492. The 1952 expedition was to the Caribbean, and the 1962 trip was to the Jerusalem as well as the European cities of London, Copenhagen, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, and Rome. On these trips, Levy served as Marcus’ assistant and helped him find and secure materials for transport to the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati, Ohio. Levy was also a founding member of the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina.
Website: https://collections.americanjewisharchives.org/ms/ms0736/ms0736.html
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/theodore-levy

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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