BlogWood: MT Archives

National Day of Lies and Hypocrisy

The Tribune’s feel-good Christian, Michelle Beardon, “reports” on the National Day of Prayer, an event that only godless America-hating heathens could possibly oppose, right?

Today, more than 2 million Americans - including thousands in the Tampa Bay area - are expected to participate in about 40,000 events in observance of the National Day of Prayer.

This year's theme is ``Let Freedom Ring.''

Dozens of local events are planned, including a prayer marathon from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the King of Kings Royalty Theatre in downtown Clearwater, a luncheon at the Tampa Convention Center and a prayer rally in Lykes Gaslight Park in downtown Tampa from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Praying passengers will join pilots and boaters as they fly the skies and cruise the seas of Tampa Bay.

I don’t know about you, but I prefer my pilots to be flying the plane, not praying for guidance.

``Participation seems to have doubled from last year,'' said Bill Malone, co-coordinator of the local effort with his wife, Pam. The Malones run a Clearwater-based ministry.

``The response tells us that people are hurting and feel things are out of control,'' he said. ``They're reaching out to someone who has control.'

The national observance was established by Congress in 1952. Although all of the events are Christian-oriented, Malone emphasized that the day of prayer is for people of all faiths.

Right. The day of prayer is ostensibly for people of all faiths. Funny thing, though: most people of faith don’t need the government to tell them when to pray. And the National Day of Prayer has been taken over by Fundamentalist Christians (shocking, I know).

Congress by federal law has designated the first Thursday in May as an annual National Day of Prayer. (May 6 this year.)

In recent years, the event has been dominated by the National Day of Prayer Task Force, a Religious Right group based in Colorado Springs. The task force is chaired by Shirley Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family founder James C. Dobson, and operates from the offices of Focus on the Family.

Dobson’s NDP Task Force sponsors thousands of prayer day events in congressional offices, at state capitols and other public buildings around the country. The Dobsons also visit the White House for a ceremony with President George W. Bush. The speakers and topics at Task Force events are chosen to promote the Religious Right’s “Christian nation” viewpoint.

Observes Americans United Executive Director Barry W. Lynn, “The Dobsons depict their prayer day events as merely an ecumenical worship service. But in fact, they are promoting a fundamentalist political agenda that most Americans reject.

“These events are carefully managed to give the general public the impression that the government has endorsed the Religious Right’s religious and political viewpoint,” Lynn continued. “It’s exactly the opposite of what our nation’s Founders intended.”

So, The National Day of Prayer is actually a vehicle that the religious right uses to drive their agenda. Here’s more from Americans United for Separation of Church and State:

Material on the NDP Task Force website promotes controversial Religious Right political views. The site encourages Americans to pray for leaders in five areas government, the media, the education system, churches and families.

The education section bashes public education and repeats common Religious Right misstatements about schools, asserting, “Many of our schools and universities are minimizing traditional subjects such as history and math, and are instead promoting a radical social agenda. For example, some schools begin teaching homosexual propaganda to kindergartners. As a result, our children are entering the ‘real world’ knowing more about politically correct ideas than they do about reading or science! Pray that your schools will get ‘back to basics’ when it comes to educating our children, instilling the leaders of tomorrow with a respect for the Judeo-Christian values upon which our nation was founded.”

The media section assumes widespread bias against “Christians,” asserting, “We can also pray for the Christian individuals in the news and entertainment industries, asking the Lord to grant them strength and perseverance as they endeavor to let their lights shine in what is often an environment hostile to those who voice their belief in Christ.”

This year’s NDP Task Force Honorary Chairman is Oliver North, a longtime Religious Right activist and former radio talk-show host known for his outspoken far-right views.