Not Praying in Jesus Name - a Sellout?

[Hoovie]

I have always thought every prayer, in every place should be "in Jesus Name".

This has never been a question in my personal life/church/family.

However, at times I am asked to pray in a group - as in asking a blessing where there are unbelievers or even those who may be of a non Christian religion and realize there could be offense. I have never shied away from saying, "In Jesus Name" or "in Your Name" we pray, Amen.

This past week I was in a meeting where a Spirit-filled Christian was asked to give invocation at a banquet dinner with a mix of several hundred people (I know some were Jewish) present. He entirely skipped the ending, making no reference to any "Name" at all.

I was offended a bit at first, then thought, perhaps it was the right thing to do here - knowing he was representing some who would not pray "In Jesus' Name".

How do you deal with these situations? If you are a chaplain and you know an individual will be offended if you pray to Jesus, what do you do?

If you don't pray in Jesus Name - what is the point?

[Scott Hutchinson]

If a known Christian is asked to pray a prayer at a public function ,then folks ought to expect him to say in Jesus Name.
Would can pray in Jesus Name without being hateful or act in a bad spirit.

[Hoovie]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

If a known Christian is asked to pray a prayer at a public function ,then folks ought to expect him to say in Jesus Name.
Would can pray in Jesus Name without being hateful or act in a bad spirit.

I tend to agree. I guess it just gets a bit complicated if you are representing a group or individual and know that some are not Christian.

[chosenbyone]

When I pray, saying in Jesus' name is something that rolls off my tongue followed by Amen. As Christians, I don't think it disrespectful to invoke the name of our Lord and Savior while praying. The Muslims have no problem saying Allah, so why should Christians not have the same liberty?

[CC1]

Originally Posted by Scott Hutchinson

If a known Christian is asked to pray a prayer at a public function ,then folks ought to expect him to say in Jesus Name.
Would can pray in Jesus Name without being hateful or act in a bad spirit.

I agree that is the way it should be but in reality it probably isnt'

I was surprised today while listening to a new conservative radio talk show host here in Nashville. His name is Michael DelJorno and this is his first week here. He just came from Tulsa, OK.

While there are many conservative talk show hosts and some make it clear they are a Christian, most on secular radio stations don't emphasize that.

Today this guy did three or four times in a specific way. One of them was rather cute. When he announced that Rosie O'Donnell was leaving The View. He paused then reverently said "Thank you God. In Jesus name, amen!"

He also at one point gave a great summary about Jesus Christ dying for our sins, Jesus being God in the flesh, etc.

Never heard that on a secular radio station before.

[Sam]

This is chapter 3, pages 21 through 34 of Franklin Graham’s book The Name which was copyrighted in 2002.
----------------------------
There are factions of society today that hate God and everything that He stands for. But I did not expect such a vehement backlash. In America, where our currency declares “In God We Trust,” it still surprises me that when a Christian minister does what he is ordained to do –read and quote from the Bible, share the truth of the Gospel, pray in the Name of Jesus –some people view these acts as borderline subversive!

In January of 2001, our nation was perhaps more divided politically than at any time I can remember. The controversy surrounding the presidential election vote count in Florida had polarized Americans. Even though most voters were pleased to see a change in the White House after eight turbulent years, according to pollsters, nearly 50 percent were disappointed and even convinced that Governor Bush and the Republicans had somehow manipulated the outcome. In hindsight, election officials and even the media concurred after intense scrutiny and review, that this was not the case.

My father has had the honor of praying or participating in some way at eight presidential inaugurations, beginning with the ceremony for Lyndon Johnson in 1965. When it came time for Bill Clinton’s second inauguration, my father was invited once again to offer an inaugural prayer. Because his health problems had flared, he asked me to accompany him to Washington D.C.

During that ceremony, I was seated at my father’s right side on the inaugural platform. To my left sat all of the Supreme Court justices in their robes and caps. Behind was the Democratic and Republican leadership from both houses of Congress.

This spectacular event always involves much pomp and circumstance. The election battle is over. The time now comes for the government of this mighty land and its citizens to inaugurate a president.

I had been impressed to see members of the opposing political parties –in heated battle for the prize of the White House just two months before –now shaking hands and greeting each other warmly. Life for both the nation and individuals would move on. Bill Clinton would continue to govern. Bob Dole would return to private life, make speeches, and enjoy other productive activities outside the Senate chamber. What a great nation and system of government.

When the time had come for my father to pray, the only help needed was a firm hand to help him stand.

Following the ceremony the dignitaries and guests had walked up the steps of the Capitol Building to attend the inaugural luncheon hosted by the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. This gathering has long been a tradition and serves to further make the statement that that inauguration day symbolizes our unity as a nation. My father had been asked to offer the prayer of blessing for the food, and so he was seated at the head table. I was seated a short distance away, concerned that he would need some help to the podium when it came time to pray. I approached Vice President Al Gore, seated next to my father, and asked him if he would assist my father if needed. He graciously agreed and when my father was introduced, Vice President Gore helped him to his feet to make his way to the microphone.

Though the day had been filled with historical pageantry, I was happy to put it all on the back burner and head for the hills of North Carolina and to my mountain home.

Now, four years later as the inauguration of the forty-third president approached, the inaugural committee eagerly wanted Billy Graham to participate in the ceremony. Perhaps more so than for any other president-elect, my father really wanted to do this for George W. Bush. Some years before, while visiting the Bush family at Kennebunkport, Maine, my father and George W. had had a conversation on issues of faith that had made a dramatic impact on Bush’s life, as he describes in his biography, “A Charge to Keep.”

However, with weather forecasters predicting a cold, wet January morning in the Washington D.C. area, my father’s doctors at the Mayo Clinic had urged him not to put himself at risk by attending the inauguration, as it would be held outdoors. The Inaugural Committee, on behalf of President-elect Bush, called and asked me to give the invocation in my father’s place. I had already been invited to speak at the president’s prayer service at Washington National Cathedral the Sunday following the inauguration, but to deliver the invocation at the swearing in was another matter. Years ago I had told my father that I would stand with him and help him in any way I could, so how could I say no? With a deep sense of responsibility, I accepted the invitation and began to prepare. What an opportunity –to pray for the new president and his administration, as well as stand in for the man I love and respect so much. I also saw this as an awesome responsibility that could not be taken lightly.

Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell, pastor of the large Windsor Village United Methodist Church in suburban Houston, was scheduled to deliver the benediction. Reverend Caldwell was a friend of the Bush family and had introduced George W. at the Republican National Convention the previous summer.

I labored to construct a prayer that would invoke God’s power. Millions would be listening. My deep desire was to focus the nation on Almighty God, ask for His blessing upon the incoming president and outgoing administration, and to bring glory to His Name.

The nation was still licking its election wounds. I pondered the turmoil that the country was still feeling as I wondered how I should close the prayer. Many times Christian pastors praying in public forums just finish their prayers with “…in the Name of God.” But for me to do so would falsify who I am. I would be disobedient by denying the One I follow. I have always prayed in Jesus’ Name. I know of no other ground on which a sinner like me can come before a God who is holy.

Here is another way of looking at it. England’s Queen Elizabeth knighted my father in December 2001, but he was unable to travel to the United Kingdom to receive this honor. Instead, the queen authorized the British ambassador to the United States to confer the knighthood upon my father in Washington D.C., on her behalf. What if the ambassador had acted on his own, without Her Majesty giving him that power? His knighthood would have been meaningless. Similarly, we have no basis or authority to come to God in any way except through the Lord Jesus Christ –the Representative God Himself personally sent to us when, through our human striving, we could not reach Him.

Years ago as a young man I sensed that if opportunities came for public ministry they were from God. Now He had opened a door. I had been given a larger platform –the opportunity to help direct the eyes of the nation to God, To honor His Son, wasn’t even a question. How could I do anything different than to pray in His Name?

The Friday afternoon before the inauguration, I attended a meeting of the platform participants conducted by the Inaugural Committee. We met at a Washington hotel to review the order of service. It was in that conference room where I met Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell: tall, handsome, articulate –a powerhouse of a preacher. After introductions, his personal warmth made me feel as though we had been longtime friends. We found a few minutes to talk privately, and Rev. Caldwell said, ”Franklin, I want to ask you a question. Are you going to pray in the Name of Jesus?”

“Yes,” I answered. “I always do.”

“Good!” Kirbyjon said, flashing a great big smile. “I am too.”

I chuckled to myself and thought, “I like him; he’s got guts for Jesus.”

to be continued in section 2

[Sam]

Inauguration day, Saturday, January 21, the forecast had been accurate. Temperatures were near freezing. A chilling drizzle fell from the ground-hugging clouds. My father had made a good decision to stay home.

My wife, Jane, and I arrived at the Capitol Building at 9 A.M. and were taken to a holding room with other platform participants. A couple of hours later we were led to the top of the Capitol steps by a marine, where a spokesman announced our arrival over the P.A. system. I was seated in a chair placed in the same spot my father had occupied four years earlier. I could hot help but realize how God had used that experience to prepare me for this day. From the noise in front of the Capitol, I could tell a large crowd was assembled, but seeing faces was impossible due to a large bank of TV cameras in front of the stage that blocked the view.

I was struck again by this smooth transfer of power as dignitaries descended the steps and took their seats. Although the presidential election had been vigorously contested in a way unprecedented in American history, the time had come for America to honor and install a new leader. And in spite of political hostilities, our country has always risen to the occasion with dignity.

When the last guests were seated, the president-elect and his family were announced and escorted to the platform as thunderous applause echoed through the fog. Directly in front of me sat the outgoing team of President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. Across the aisle sat the incoming team of President-elect George W. Bush and Vice President-elect Dick Cheney.

Anticipation swelled. People of such diverse backgrounds and political persuasions had come together in a moment of unity. The Lord, in His sovereign power, was allowing me the privilege of telling others about Someone more important than anyone on that platform –the One bearing the Name above all other names.

The time of invocation came and I made my way to the podium. Speaking into the bitter January air, I offered this prayer to God Almighty as my breath turned to white puffs.

“Blessed are You, O Lord, our God.
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power
And the glory and the majesty and the splendor;
For everything in heaven and earth is Yours.
Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom;
You are exalted as head over all.
Wealth and honor come from You;
You are the ruler of all things.
In Your hands are strength and power to exalt
And give strength to all.”

I wanted to make clear at the very outset that as great a nation as America is, we are still dependent totally on the mercy of a holy and great God.

“As President Lincoln once said,
We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven.
We have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity.
We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power,
As no other nation has ever grown.
But we have forgotten God.
It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the Offended Power,
To confess our national sins,
And to pray for clemency and forgiveness.”

I thought what Lincoln –one of our greatest presidents –had said was perfect for our present hour, in light of the previous eight years. Although in the same time period our country had experienced abundant prosperity, it was important to remember from where all blessings come –the mercy of our heavenly Father.

“O Lord,
As we come together on this historic
And solemn occasion to inaugurate once again
A president and vice president,
Teach us afresh that power, wisdom, and salvation
Come only from Your hand.”

“We pray, O Lord, for
President-elect George W. Bush
And Vice President-elect Richard B. Cheney,
To whom You have entrusted leadership
Of this nation at this moment in history.”

“We pray that You will help them bring our country together,
So that we may rise above partisan politics
And seek the larger vision of Your will for our nation.
Use them to bring reconciliation between the races
And healing to political wounds,
That we may truly become ‘one nation under God.’”

Our country had never had such a difficult and potentially divisive presidential election. Many citizens were bitter and disillusioned by the process and the outcome. There were more angry demonstrators protesting on the streets of Washington D.C. than at any inauguration since the Vietnam War. We needed supernatural help to forgive one another, to heal wounds, to move on as a united people.

“Give our new president and all who advise him
Calmness in the Face of Storms,
Encouragement in the Face of Frustration and
Humility in the Face of Success.”

Of course none of us could have realized, when I asked the Lord to give George W. Bush “calmness in the face of storms,” just how great a storm would howl eight months later on Tuesday morning, September 11.

“Give them the wisdom to know, and to do, what is right,
And the courage to say no to all that is contrary to Your statutes and holy law.”

“Lord, we pray for their families
And especially their wives,
Laura Bush and Lynne Cheney,
That they may sense Your Presence
And know Your Love.”

“Today we entrust to You
President and Senator Clinton,
And Vice President and Mrs. Gore.”

“Lead them as they journey through new doors of opportunity to serve others.”

“Now, O Lord, we dedicate this
Presidential Inaugural Ceremony to You.
May this be the beginning of a new dawn for America
As we humble ourselves before You
And acknowledge You alone
As our Lord, Our Savior, and our Redeemer.”

Believing God was directing every word of my prayer, I had carefully chosen the word “Redeemer.” Naturally, I was referring to the One who came to give His life for all who will ever draw breath on this planet. The redemption He purchased with the sacrifice of His own blood is available to anyone who will simply accept it –regardless of creed, nationality, religion, race, reputation, or personal history. I knew stating that there is no other Name by which an individual can be saved would grate on some ears and prick certain hearts. However, as a minister of the Gospel, I was not there to stroke he egos of men. My role was to acknowledge the all-powerful One and please Him. The Bible says: “Therefore, whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.”

I fear God in a healthy way. I know how proud the Father is of His Son. As a parent, I know how pleased my wife, Jane, and I are when someone says something nice about our children. Would God not have a similar response? Would He not be pleased to hear us acknowledge with honor the Name of His beloved Son? I want to please my Father in heaven no matter the cost.

I continued:

“We pray this in the name of the Father,
And have the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ,
And have the Holy Spirit. Amen”

To my surprise, I heard amends and applause from an audience assembled primarily for political interests –not religious. I was gratified that those listening had understood the importance of seeking God’s favor. Upon returning to my seat, Senator Hillary Clinton, seated next to Tipper Gore, who sat next to Chelsea Clinton to my right, reached across these two ladies, clasped my hand, and whispered, “Thank you.”

Able now to sit back and take in the remaining ceremony, I was proud of the president as he delivered an eloquent and power-filled speech and rejoiced with the ringing benediction given by Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell. He did not hold anything back. He honored the Lord Jesus Christ and prayed in His Name.

After the swearing in, once again honoring the custom, the platform party followed President Bush and his family up the Capitol Building steps to the dome for the inaugural luncheon. Members of the Senate, the new cabinet, Supreme Court justices and their spouses were assembled. Just as my father had done four years earlier, I offered a prayer for the meal followed by heartwarming comments by President Bush to the distinguished guests. During the meal there was a steady stream of senators, both Democrat and Republican, who came to the head of the table to congratulate the new president. It is a day I will never forget, and I dare say most Americans will not forget either.

Jane and I were privileged to observe the inaugural parade down Pennsylvania Avenue from the president’s viewing box. As the festivities were concluding, I slipped back to my hotel to put the final touches on my message to be delivered the next morning at the Cathedral. Most elected officials from the capitol city attended. This was specifically a religious service, the first event sponsored by the new Bush White House. I felt complete freedom in the pulpit to say what I believed God had put in my heart.

continued in section 3

[Sam]

After this service, I greeted the president and his family and assured him of my prayers as he shouldered such a heavy responsibility. That afternoon, following lunch with friends, I eagerly flew to a more serene atmosphere…home in the western mountains of North Carolina.

I thought I had left the inaugural flurry behind. However, days later, Alan Dershowitz, a man who described himself as a deeply committed Jew, took offense at my use of the Name of Jesus Christ. Dershowitz, a professor at Harvard Law School and an attorney who has defended clients as diverse as O.J. Simpson and Jim Bakker, in an opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times, said: “The very first act of the new Bush administration was to have a Protestant Evangelical minister officially dedicate the inauguration to Jesus Christ, whom he declared to be ‘our Savior.’ Invoking ‘the Father, the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ’ and ‘the Holy Spirit,’ Billy Graham’s son, the man selected by George W. Bush to bless his presidency, excluded the tens of millions of Americans who are Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Shintoist, Unitarians, agnostics and atheists from his blessing by his particularistic and parochial language.”

The entire article continued in the same venomous vein. Dershowitz did not disguise his outrage: “It is permissible in the United States to reject any particular theology. Indeed that is part of our glorious diversity. What is not acceptable is for a presidential inauguration to exclude millions of citizens from its opening ceremony by dedicating it to a particular religious ‘savior.’”

The Dershowitz article concluded, “If Bush wants all Americans to accept him as their president, he made an inauspicious beginning by sandwiching his unity speech between to divisive, sectarian and inappropriate prayers.”

What was he talking about? I am a Christian. Don’t ask me to pray like a Hindu. I am not a Hindu. Don’t ask me to pray to Muhammad; I am not a Muslim, I am a Christian. That is who I am; a believer in the greatest man that ever lived –Jesus Christ—a Jew.

The second prayer that Dershowitz referred to was, of course, the benediction prayed by Kirbyjon Caldwell in which he had also closed by invoking the Name of Jesus. Kirbyjon told USA Today, I would have been misrepresenting who I am and arguably even why I was there had I not prayed in Jesus’ Name.”

Amen, Kirbyjon!

Alan Dershowitz should remember that this nation was built on a Christian foundation. Patrick Henry once declared, “It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason people of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”

I found Dershsowitz’s criticism galling. I had not excluded millions of Americans from my prayer. I wanted to ask Mr. Dershowitz, “Since I am a minister of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, if I am to express my religious freedom, how am I supposed to pray?” And who has the right to tell me what I should pray? As an American, am I not guaranteed freedom of speech? Freedom of worship? In my prayer, I did not force anyone to agree with me. I did not suggest that the inaugural ceremony could not continue until everyone present “came forward to pray the sinner’s prayer.” I just did what I do; I always pray in His Name.

Others chimed in with Dershowitz. Barry Lynn, head of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said that both inaugural prayers were “inappropriate and insensitive.” An article in the New Republic described the prayers that Kirbyjon and I offered as “crushing Christological thuds” that “barred millions of Americans from their own amens.”

I was not without defenders. I received hundreds of enthusiastic letters from individuals, and many in the media offered support. Jeff Jacoby, a columnist for the Boston Globe, wrote: “Like it or not, American Jews –like American Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and atheists—are different from their neighbors. This country was founded by Christians and built on broad Christian principles. Threatening? Far from it: It is in precisely this Christian country that Jews have known the most peaceful, prosperous and successful existence in their long history. In America, a non-Christian need not answer, ‘Amen’ to an explicitly Christian prayer. This is a society where members of minority faiths live and worship without fear, secure in the hospitality and liberty America extends to all religions. No American should try to suppress the prayers of others. ‘Jesus’ should not be a forbidden word in this land. Not even at a presidential inauguration.”

A letter to the Jewish press stated; “No doubt any prayer would be offensive and exclusive to an atheist, but indulging such sensitivity would effectively give the non-believer a veto power over the free expression rights of the believer…I would expect a Christian minister who deeply believes in his faith to give a prayer grounded on that faith.”

The opinions expressed by some of those who reacted negatively should sound a loud warning bell to followers of Christ in America. For example, a student at Kent State University wrote, “Graham encourages us to acknowledge his God alone as our Lord, our Savior and our Redeemer.” He’s exactly right. I do encourage everyone to acknowledge the one true God, and His Son and Him alone.

I cannot agree with the idea that every religious leader should be forced to pray “politically correct” prayers. Allowing someone to pray as he does normally in expressing his faith does not explicitly discount other religions. Think about this: If an atheist were invited to give the invocation at an inaugural –perish the thought—would we expect him to pray in the name of Jesus or any god?

I believe that the response to the inaugural prayers is additional evidence of a disturbing trend in American public life: Christians who use the Name of Jesus and insist that He is “the one and only way to God” are increasingly viewed by many in the liberal media as narrow minded religious bigots who represent a threat to the rest of society.

Americans are extremely religious as the Gallup poll shows. But that religious bent rubs against another rubs against another value in our society that may trump all others: tolerance. In our thirst for personal autonomy, deal we seek is, “I will not question your beliefs or behavior you will do the same for me.” Does this now apply to spiritual issues too?

An eloquent advocate of Christian faith, Ravi Zacharias wrote in Jesus Among Other Gods, “We are living in a time when angry voices demand with increasing insistence that we ought not to propagate the Gospel, that we ought not to consider anyone ‘lost’ just because they are not Christians. ‘We are all born into different beliefs, and therefore, we should leave it that way’ –so goes the tolerant ‘wisdom’’ of our time…When people make such statements, they forget or do not know that one is not born a Christian. All Christians are such by virtue of conversion. To ask the Christian not to reach out to anyone else who is from another faith is to ask that Christian to deny his own faith.”

None of this discussion and fuss really amounts to a hill of beans if Jesus Christ was just another “great teacher.” But what if He is more that? He is the One who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” A loyal follower of Jesus does not concoct personal ideas about these matters. All he or she does is faithfully represent the words of the Master. But this is increasingly considered suspect and even subversive in America.

Most “burning issues” in our day flame out quickly. Such was the case with the inaugural prayers. The media attention span is short, but at least for a few days in early 2001, the Name Jesus was heard in public discourse as something other than a curse word.

[Hoovie]

Thanks for all the response.

[rgcraig]

I guess you would always have the option to just say "Amen" if you felt it would offend someone.

I'm pretty sure the prayer would still be heard.