Biden omits God from his national prayer day declaration

Well he could have said like he did before "you know... the thing!"

When Jesus was asked to teach people how to pray He said...

"Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen."

or...

"Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored,
may your kingdom come,
may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we ourselves have forgiven our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

The word "God" is not mentioned in either translation! That puts Joe Biden in pretty good company.

rockytopva said:

I didn't hear the word Father either!

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So..?

I don't have a problem with President Biden not mentioning God because I don't look towards him to publicly promote or endorse the Christian faith. I voted for a President, not a pastor. In fact, I'm glad he didn't because I don't want him pandering to Christians for their political loyalty like Trump did.

I don't want Biden promoting and endorsing Christianity. Furthermore, I don't think the President (or any other national leader) should endorse and promote Christianity or any other specific religion. The freedom of religion is a valued and cherished freedom in America and it should take precedence over endorsing one specific religion over all the other religions practiced here in this country. I think the President and the government (local, state, federal) should be neutral on expressing religious beliefs.

President Biden mentions God not at all but prays and goes to Mass. President Trump mentioned God 8 times and played golf.

Some excerpts from President Biden's address February 4, 2021, the day of the National Prayer Breakfast...

"For so many in our nation this is a dark, dark time, so where do we turn? Faith. Kierkegaard wrote "Faith sees best in the dark." I believe that to be true. For me, in the darkest moments faith provides hope and solace, it provides clarity and purpose as well. It shows the way forward as one nation in a common purpose, to respect one another, to care for one another, to leave no one behind."

"We'll come out stronger for it. The Bible tells us "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." We still have in front of us many difficult nights to endure, but we'll get through them together."

And, at 4:01 of his address, he said, "We'll need one another. We need to lead on one another, lift one another up, and with faith guide us through the darkness into the light. May God bless you all and may God protect our troops."

seeking.IAM said:

President Biden mentions God not at all but prays and goes to Mass. President Trump mentioned God 8 times and played golf.

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Trump slandered people, mocked people, used profanity, took God's name in vain, paid hush money to his inappropriate content star and playboy bunny mistresses, encouraged violence, praised violence, and was habitually dishonest. I guess as long as he mentioned God to appease his base, then it was perfectly acceptable to dismiss all of his sins out of hand with stubborn defiance and "I voted for a President, not a pastor!"

seeking.IAM said:

President Biden mentions God not at all but prays and goes to Mass. President Trump mentioned God 8 times and played golf.

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Biden goes to Mass but seems to decide for himself which of the Church's teachings he will accept. Trump admits to having a very personal faith. Can we make a sharp distinction between the two of them after all?

On balance, we probably can't make as much out of this event as some have done, BUT let's not completely forget why Biden was speaking and what the event was. It was the National Day of Prayer. For him to have not mentioned God at all on this occasion does seem peculiar, almost intentional.

.Mikha'el. said:

I don't take issue with that. The only part I take issue with is

The way this is worded goes too far out of the way to be inclusive and be seen as inclusive. It's clunky and awkward.

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So, whom do you want omitted?

Guinan said:

Trump slandered people, mocked people, used profanity, took God's name in vain, paid hush money to his inappropriate content star and playboy bunny mistresses, encouraged violence, praised violence, and was habitually dishonest. But I guess as long as he mentioned God to appease his base, then it was apparently acceptable to dismiss all of his sins out of hand with stubborn defiance and "I voted for a President, not a pastor!"

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Great post! Thanks!

Albion said:

Biden goes to Mass but seems to decide for himself what of its teaching he will accept. Trump admits to having a very personal faith. Can we make a sharp distinction between the two of them after all?

On balance, we probably can't make as much out of this event as some have done, BUT let's not completely forget why Biden was speaking and what the event was. It was the National Day of Prayer. For him to have not mentioned God at all on this occasion does seem peculiar, almost intentional.

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It probably was intentional, as it no doubt was meant to be inclusive. If, as a Catholic, he mentioned that we should pray to (the Christian) God, people would be criticizing him for not being inclusive of others. There are people who are just looking to criticize President Biden no matter what he says (or doesn't say).

pescador said:

It probably was intentional, as it no doubt was meant to be inclusive.

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It seems so.

If, as a Catholic, he mentioned that we should pray to (the Christian) God, people would be criticizing him for not being inclusive of others.

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Would they? Is that indeed what happened to all the previous presidents who spoken at ceremonies conducted on the National Day of Prayer? I don't think so. And it's not necessary for him to have specified "the Christian God."

Here is someone else mentioning God...

"America is unique in the world because we acknowledge that our rights come from God, not government." Matt Gaetz

pescador said:

Here is someone else mentioning God...

"America is unique in the world because we acknowledge that our rights come from God, not government." Matt Gaetz

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And we all know what kind of person he is. Sheesh.

Here is another quote from Matt Gaetz...

"My father is a Lutheran, my mother is Methodist. While I've attended church with both throughout my life, I was saved in a Baptist Church during my teenage years. I am a member of First Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach. The Bible, the Gospel--these are our instructions from God. We are to follow faithfully."

So much for accusing Biden for not saying "God" specifically at a day for national prayer (by all people regardless of their belief -- non-discriminatory) while Gaetz says that we should faithfully follow "our instructions from God".

Pavel Mosko said:

Well he could have said like he did before "you know... the thing!"

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Exactly. He simply forgot who God was.

pescador said:

Here is another quote from Matt Gaetz...

"My father is a Lutheran, my mother is Methodist. While I've attended church with both throughout my life, I was saved in a Baptist Church during my teenage years. I am a member of First Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach. The Bible, the Gospel--these are our instructions from God. We are to follow faithfully."

So much for accusing Biden for not saying "God" specifically at a day for national prayer (by all people regardless of their belief -- non-discriminatory) while Gaetz says that we should faithfully follow "our instructions from God".

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Selective outrage, perhaps? I suppose there are right-wing Christians who are accustomed to having a President pander to them (and their Christian faith) and they don't like it when that pandering stops.

Wow, Gaetz has a funny and offensive and criminal way of following God.