Prayer of the Guest Chaplain of the U.S. Senate: Rabbi Emmet Allen Frank on 26 June 1968
Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=56852
open_content_license: Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication Date: 2024-06-16
Last Updated: 2025-02-02
Categories: 🇺🇸 United States of America, Opening Prayers for Legislative Bodies
Tags: 20th century C.E., 58th century A.M., 90th Congress, English vernacular prayer, Prayers of Guest Chaplains, prayers of military chaplains, U.S. Senate, תחינות teḥinot
Excerpt: The Opening Prayer given in the U.S. Senate on 26 June 1968. . . .
Content:
Guest Chaplain: Rabbi Emmet Allen Frank, Temple Beth El, Alexandria, Virginia
Sponsor: n/a
Date of Prayer: 26 June 1968
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God,
we praise Thee who daily renewest creation.
Thy presence floods the world
as the sun bursts over the horizon.
We feel Thy nearness,
and seek to become ever more like Thee:
loving for Thou art loving;
just for Thou art just;
merciful for Thou art merciful;
compassionate for Thou art compassionate;
healing the sick,
clothing the naked,
feeding the hungry.
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Give us the strength
to emulate Thee;
to reach out to our fellow man
with open arms—
not with clenched fists;
with plowshares—
not with swords;
with pruning hooks—
not with spears.
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Let war be made dumb—
let peace reign supreme.
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Let nations tear down
the walls of fear
that separate us.
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Let us band together
to bring God’s bounty
so graciously bestowed upon us
unto all His children,
our brothers.
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Let us, the greatest of all nations,
put away the divisiveness in our midst.
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Let us seek each other’s heart,
searching for the best
not the meanest
in us.
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Let us deal charitably with one another.
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Let us draw closer to one another,
and in one united, heroic effort
let us remove fear,
poverty,
ignorance,
hunger,
and sickness.
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Praised art Thou, O Lord,
who sustainest all.
Amen.
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This prayer of the guest chaplain was offered in the sixth month of the second session of the 90th US Senate, and published in the Congressional Record, vol. 114 part 14 (26 June 1968), page 18777.
Source(s)
Congressional Record, vol. 114, part 14 (26 June 1968), p. 18777
Congressional Record, vol. 114, part 14 (26 June 1968), p. 18778
Contributor: Aharon N. Varady (transcription)
Co-authors:
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Name: Emmet Allen Frank
Bio: Rabbi Emmet Allen Frank (1925-1987), born in New Orleans, was a Reform movement rabbi in the United States. He graduated from the University of Houston and received his ordination from Hebrew Union College's Jewish Institute of Religion. He was an assistant rabbi at his home congregation in Houston before moving to Alexandria in 1954. During his years in Alexandria, Rabbi Frank was an outspoken opponent of racial segregation. He was bitterly criticized by segregationists after a 1958 Yom Kippur homily in which he attacked Virginia's Democratic Senator Harry F. Byrd and other state officials for their role in Virginia's Massive Resistance to court-ordered school desegregation. After leaving Alexandria in 1969, Rabbi Frank served at congregations in Seattle and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, before founding in 1972 his All Peoples Liberal Reform Synagogue in Miami Beach.
Website:
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/emmet-allen-frank
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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
Featured Image:
Title: Flag_of_the_United_States_Senate.svg
Caption: Flag of the United States Senate
