4/27/2006

National Day of Prayer Growing

Major observance coming in May for this national event 

BY BOB ELLIS

DAKOTA VOICE

This year the National Day of Prayer will be observed by more people than ever in South Dakota and across America on May 4.

The National Day of Prayer was started nationally by a joint congressional resolution signed by President Harry Truman in 1952. This practice was amended by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to permanently recognize the day as the first Thursday of every May. Since then, observance has steadily grown. In 1990, Shirley Dobson, wife of Dr. James Dobson of Focus on the Family, became the chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force.

Last year, over 40,000 observances were marked across the country, and every state except Arizona issued proclamations in support of the day. 2006 is expected to be even bigger.

This year in South Dakota, the National Day of Prayer will be marked by official observances in Pierre, Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Spearfish, Lead/ Deadwood, and Mount Rushmore. More cities may have joined the roster of official celebrants after the time of this writing. To check for events in your area go to www.ndptf.org. As of this writing, details are becoming available for the following observances:

• Custer: 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm at Way Park in front of the court house .

• Lead/Deadwood: 11:30 am to 1:00 pm at the Lawrence County courthouse .

• Pierre: check www.ndptf.org for upcoming details.

• Rapid City: 7:00 am at the City/School Administration building; 8:00 to 12:00 pm at Memorial Park band shell, with a   community rally in the park from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm.

• Sioux Falls: check www.ndptf.org for upcoming details.

• Spearfish: 12:00 pm at the Spearfish City Hall by the flag pole

Mount Rushmore will be host to the First Annual Mt Rushmore National Memorial National Day of Prayer on May 4 at 6:00 pm. Rita Fischer, West River South Dakota Regional Coordinator, says the Mt. Rushmore observance will be one of the largest events outside Washington, D.C. Speaker and author William Federer will emcee the event. Several government officials have been invited, and Senator John Thune, though detained by official business in Washington, has prepared a video which will be played to those attending the Mt. Rushmore observance.

Fischer says the Mt. Rushmore event will feature patriotic and inspirational music, and speakers which will address and pray for five different areas of prayer concern: government, media, education, family and churches. The purpose of this event is to call attention to the need for prayer, and the need for personal repentance and prayer. Our military members across the world will also be prayed for.

Speakers at the Mt. Rushmore observance will include but are not limited to Tom Minnery, Senior Vice President of Government and Public Policy for Focus on the Family, Chaplain Lynn Wilson of the South Dakota National Guard, and Dr. C. Richard Wells, former president of Criswell College in Dallas, Texas and Senior Pastor of South Canyon Baptist Church in Rapid City. KNBN news anchor Jarrod Eben will sing at the event.

There will be t-shirts featuring lithographs of freedom designed by Marnie Freeman, Dallas, Texas given away to the first 250 people, and 300 of Freeman's lithographs "One Nation Under God" will also be given away. Also, glow-in-the-dark prayer wristbands to the first 1,000 attendees. The Christian Motorcycle Association (CMA) will be serving as ushers at Mt. Rushmore.

The amphitheatre at Mt. Rushmore seats over 2,500 and attendance is expected to overflow this area to "standing room only." Fischer said that even if inclement weather dictates some changes in the program, the prayer event will be held no matter what. Admission to the prayer event is free, but there is an $8.00 fee for an annual parking sticker to park your vehicle at the memorial.

America has a history of praying people going back to her earliest days. Christopher Columbus, the European who discovered America in 1492, was himself a Christian who wanted to make Christ known to the new land. The first permanent English settlement at Jamestown drew up a charter which stated their goal was the "...furtherance of the Christian Religion to People who as yet live in ignorance of the true Knowledge and Worship of God." The Mayflower Compact of the Pilgrims said they had undertaken their journey to America "...for the glory of God and advancement of the Christian Faith." The first official act of the Continental Congress in 1774 was to call for prayer. The first national day of prayer and fasting was declared in 1776. The founding document of the United States, the Declaration of Independence, refers to "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God," "...all men are created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights," and "a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence."

After the Revolutionary War for independence was won, a chaplain was appointed to both the U.S. House and Senate and each session was opened with prayer, a practice which continues to this day. This daily prayer came about due in no small measure to the statement of Benjamin Franklin:

"In the beginning of the Contest with Great Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the Divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending providence in our favor.

To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?

I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth-that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?

We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that 'except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it.' I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel. I therefore beg leave to move-that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessing on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning."

Congress also passed in 1787 an ordinance which said, “Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall be forever encouraged." President Abraham Lincoln even called the nation to prayer on nine different occasions during the dark days of the Civil War, when the fate of the United States was far less than certain. That tradition as a people of faith has continued to the modern day, with the landmarks in our nation’s capital filled with reminders of our religious heritage, and the very money we spend inscribed with “In God We Trust.”

Planners of the Mt. Rushmore event include Mrs. Fischer, Pastor Dale Bartscher of First Christian Church of Rapid City, Bruce Rampelberg of First Western Corporation, and Stacey Wollman of the CareNet Pregnancy Resource Center. Fischer says donations are being accepted to help cover the cost of the Mt. Rushmore observance. Contributors can mail checks to the South Dakota Family Policy Council marked "Mt Rushmore NDP" in the memo block, mailed to 4275 Sturgis Rd, Rapid City, SD 57702. The theme for this year's National Day of Prayer is "America, Honor God," taken from 1 Samuel 2:30 which says, "Those who honor Me, I will honor." The event at Mt. Rushmore is the Judeo-Christian expression of the National Day of Prayer. People of all faiths are encouraged to participate in the National Day of Prayer.