LIHU‘E — One incident of a national day of prayer came in 1944 when American soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy and President Franklin Roosevelt called on the nation to unite in prayer, states the program flier. Thursday, the first
LIHU‘E — One incident of a national day of prayer came in 1944 when American soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy and President Franklin Roosevelt called on the nation to unite in prayer, states the program flier.
Thursday, the first Thursday in May, about 50 people of different faiths converged at the Lihu‘e Civic Center Mo‘ikeha Building to observe the 59th Annual National Day of Prayer.
A proclamation issued by Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. states the National Day of Prayer is an annual observance held on the first Thursday of May, inviting people of all faiths to pray for the nation.
“People all over the island, today, were praying for our county, our state, our nation and the needs of people throughout the world,” said Carvalho in an e-mail.
“This day is an acknowledgment that — regardless of one’s faith — the power of prayer is significant. To all who participated, either in a group or individually, mahalo for taking the time to give thanks in your own way for the blessings we have received.”
The National Day of Prayer belongs to all Americans, and also signifies that prayer is as important to our nation today as it was in the beginning, states the mayoral proclamation.
The power of prayer is alluded to in the program flier that hints the victory that followed on June 6, 1944 following the Normandy invasion was attributed to prayers from the people.
“The prayers of a nation had been a powerful force,” the program states.
According to online sources, there had been at least two individual, or single-day, national days of prayer in U.S. history before the day was made an official day of observance in 1952 by the U.S. Congress.
The Continental Congress in 1775, before the formation of the nation, issued a proclamation recommending a day of public prayer be observed, and in 1798, during the quasi-war with France, President John Adams declared May 9, 1798 as a day during which citizens of all faiths were asked to pray “that our country may be protected from all the dangers which threaten it.”
The mayoral proclamation issued Thursday states “because of the faith of our founding fathers, public prayer and national days of prayer had a significant history in American tradition and are a vital part of our heritage.”
“Today we respond and encourage everyone to participate and unite in one accord to pray for American leaders, for one another, and for people around the world,” the proclamation states.
But celebrating a National Day of Prayer has not always been smooth sailing.
President Harry S. Truman signed a bill proclaiming a National Day of Prayer must be declared by each following president on April 17, 1952, states an online source.
President Ronald Reagan, in his 1983 declaration, said, “From General Washington’s struggle at Valley Forge to the present, this nation has fervently sought and received divine guidance as it pursued the course of history. This occasion provides our nation with an opportunity to further recognize the source of our blessings, and to seek His help for the challenges we face today and in the future.”
In 1988 the law was amended so the National Day of Prayer would be held on the first Thursday of May.
Recent history has Reagan and President George Bush each hosting special events for the day only once during their respective administrations. President Bill Clinton did not hold any such events during his time in office. President George W. Bush held events on each year of his presidency, and President Barack Obama did not hold a formal event in 2009.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, on Oct. 3, 2008, sued in a Madison, Wisc. federal court Bush, Jim Doyle, Shirley Dobson, chair of the National Day of Prayer Task Force, and White House Press Secretary Dana Perino, challenging the federal law designating the National Day of Prayer.
The Obama administration, in March, 2009, asked U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb to dismiss the case, arguing the FFRF group has no legal standing to sue and the tradition of the National Day of Prayer dated back to 1775. The suit was then amended to include Obama and Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.
On March 1, 2010, Crabb ruled the FFRF’s suit can proceed because the plaintiffs had demonstrated they suffered “concrete injury” that can potentially be remedied by judicial action.
Crabb ruled the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional, and stated those supporting the law would allow the government to have unrestrained authority to demean members of any religious group without legal consequence.
On the decision, Robert Bolton, the FFRF litigation attorney, stated on the FFRF website, “The Foundation has never been opposed to nongovernment parties designating and participating in their own Day of Prayer activities. Here, however, government officials have too often adopted the religious perspective of Mrs. Dodson and the National Day of Prayer Task Force as the official public statement and position of the government. FFRF is concerned about the government’s respect for the separation of church and state, which the court intends to address.”
On April 15, 2010, Crabb ruled the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional, states an Associated Press story.
Crabb wrote that the government can no more enact laws supporting a day of prayer than it can encourage citizens to fast during Ramadan, attend a synagogue, or practice magic, the AP story states.
“In fact, it is because the nature of prayer is so personal and can have such a powerful effect on a community that the government may not use its authority to try to influence an individual’s decision whether and when to pray,” Crabb wrote in her ruling, states the AP story.
Crabb further went on to write that her ruling should not be considered a bar to any prayer days until all appeals are exhausted.
She wrote that her ruling was not a judgment on the value of prayer, noting government involvement in prayer may be constitutional if the conduct serves a “significant secular purpose” and does not amount to a call for religious action. The National Day of Prayer crosses that line, she wrote.
“It goes beyond mere ‘acknowledgment’ of religion because its sole purpose is to encourage all citizens to engage in prayer, an inherently religious exercise that serves no secular function in this context,” Crabb wrote. “In this instance, the government has taken sides on a matter that must be left to individual conscience.”
According to the U.S. Justice Department, the Obama administration will fight to preserve the law establishing an annual National Day of Prayer, states an April 22 story on the CNN Politics website.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
