Rick Warren has told his congregation that he intends to pray in Jesus’ name at tomorrow’s presidential inauguration. He has asked for prayers from his church members. Here’s the story from Brandon Rogers (HT: Justin Taylor). Warren’s prayer will be a sharp contrast to that of Gene Robinson, whose prayer was excluded from HBO’s broadcast of the inaugural festivities yesterday. Sarah Pulliam shot a video of Robinson’s prayer for Christianity Today (see below). Aaron Barnhart notes three lines from Robinson’s prayer that were in the original written version, but were not included when Robinson voiced the prayer.
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Washington Post Editorial on Bush’s Legacy
Yesterday’s Washington Post editorial about President Bush’s legacy has a surprisingly positive assessment of his efforts in Iraq. In short, the editors conclude that history will render a more favorable judgment than current surveys of popular opinion: “As matters in Iraq now stand, there is a decent chance of a reasonably pro-American incipient democracy in the heart of the Arab Middle East. This would be a major accomplishment, and one that would cast the invasion, the failures of the early years of occupation and the painful loss of more than 4,000 American lives and many thousand more Iraqi lives in a different light than the one in which they are…
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JFK’s Inauguration (1961)
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John Piper: “How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation”
John Piper has just responded to Barack Obama’s decision to invite Gene Robinson to pray at his inauguration, and it is hard-hitting material. The title says it all: “How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation.” Piper concludes: “The gospel, with its forgiveness and deliverance from homosexual practice, offers salvation. Gene Robinson, with his blessing and approval of homosexual practice, offers damnation. And he does it in the name of Christ. “It is as though Obama sought out a church which blessed stealing and adultery, and then chose its most well-known thief and adulterer, and asked him to pray. “One more time: The issue here is not that…
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National Sanctity of Human Life Day
Today President George W. Bush declared January 18, 2009 as “National Sanctity of Human Life Day” (NSHLD). President Reagan began the tradition of designating this annual observance (which typically falls on the Sunday closest to the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, January 22, 1973). One thing to note about the President’s action today. Reagan, Bush, and Bush all made the annual proclamation, while Clinton did not. Given his record of support for abortion rights, it is unlikely that Obama will continue the tradition during his administration. So this is probably the last presidential proclamation of NSHLD that we will see for at least the next 4-8 years. Here’s the entire…
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A Few Thoughts on Bush’s Speech
President George W. Bush addressed the nation in prime time tonight with a speech that lasted just over 13 minutes.
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Obama To End “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
Here’s the lede from the CNN.com story: “In an overlooked YouTube video posted on Friday, a spokesman for Barack Obama said the president-elect is committed to ending the policy that bars openly gay men and women from serving in the U.S. armed forces.”
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More on the Gay Bishop at Inauguration
On Monday, I noted that President-elect Barack Obama has invited openly gay bishop Gene Robinson to pray at the inauguration. The New York Times reports on this selection and includes a brief interview with Bishop Robinson:
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Gay Bishop To Pray at Inaugural Event
President-elect Barack Obama got a lot of flak from his base when he tapped Rick Warren to pray at the presidential swearing-in ceremony. Warren was unpopular with some of the left-wing because of his support for California’s Proposition 8, which defined marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
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Bush’s Final News Conference
Bush defends his legacy in this final news conference with the White House press corps. It’s fascinating to hear his reflections on his own presidency.