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THE QUESTION
Hindu Prayer in Senate
Last month, a Hindu chaplain opened the U.S. Senate with prayer. Some critics say that violated "One Nation Under God," others church-state separation. What do you think?
Posted by
Sally Quinn and Jon Meacham on August 1, 2007 6:05 AM
FROM THE PANEL
The Senate's First Hindu Prayer. What Took So Long?
Voters last November effectively extended the religious pluralism within the House of Representatives by electing a Muslim and two Buddhists to that chamber.
Posted by Gustav Niebuhr, on August 7, 2007 1:10 AM
All the Deities vs. No God At All
Notice that the Pledge of Allegiance is about “one NATION under God” not “a nation under ONE GOD.”
Posted by Anthony M. Stevens-Arroyo, on August 6, 2007 10:09 AM
YES to the Prayer and the Protesters
The roots of American democracy are not multicultural but culture-specific: Bible + Enlightenment.
Posted by Willis E. Elliott, on August 6, 2007 9:42 AM
Implementing the First Amendment
In the case of prayers at public, governmental gatherings, I believe religion really has no place.
Posted by Pamela K. Taylor, on August 6, 2007 8:50 AM
In UK, Hindus Don't Have a Prayer
It is a very good thing if a Hindu chaplain opens the senate proceedings with prayer. We are just beginning to try to move away from the only prayers (every day, before proceedings start) in the House of the Lords...
Posted by Julia Neuberger, on August 6, 2007 7:45 AM
Prayerful Posturing
Politicians have always sought a covering of faith for their policies, and during most of the invocations, most of the Members are not on the floor.
Posted by Cal Thomas, on August 3, 2007 10:49 AM
The Hindu on Capital Hill
Ben Franklin and Senator Bob Casey would have disagreed on a lot of things concerning religion . . . but they would have had the same opinion about what recently took place in the U.S. Senate.
Posted by Eboo Patel, on August 3, 2007 9:58 AM
Prayer OK, if Representative
I don’t know what law would prohibit this. Nor do I think it is an issue of separation of church and state. It is a question of appropriateness, however. If there were Hindu members of the Senate, then it would...
Posted by Charles "Chuck" Colson, on August 3, 2007 8:49 AM
Bad Manners and Unchristian
As Christians and Americans we have an obligation to respect the beliefs and religious practices of others.
Posted by Thomas J. Reese, S.J., on August 3, 2007 7:28 AM
America: One Nation, Many Faiths
Inviting Chaplain Zed to deliver his beautiful prayer to the Senate was not only good for Hindus; it was good for our nation.
Posted by Welton Gaddy, on August 2, 2007 10:23 AM
America's Genome of Spiritual Pluralism
A Hindu leading prayer in the Senate demonstrates that this nation embraces religious tolerance and pluralism and rejects religious totalitarianism
Posted by Samuel Rodriguez, on August 2, 2007 9:19 AM
Give Me that Really Old Time Religion
If we are going to give religion a place in public life, then it should not just be one religion. We are a nation of many religions.
Posted by Chester Gillis, on August 2, 2007 8:55 AM
Religious Pluralism 301--Hindu Prayer
In these “On Faith” discussions we have dealt several times with the Islamic faith as it seeks its place and voice in the American religious landscape. We might call those discussions “Religious Pluralism 101”. We have dealt with the Mormon...
Posted by Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite, on August 2, 2007 7:09 AM
Constitutional Ignoramuses in the Senate's Dog Days
That a Hindu prayer in the Senate is worth a story, much less a front-page story, attests only to our level of national stupidity.
Posted by Susan Jacoby, on August 1, 2007 9:19 AM
Prayers in the Senate "To Whom it May Concern"
In a pluralistic society, prayers designed to favor and please one assertive and overly-defined constituency at the expanse of others seems manifestly unfair.
Posted by Martin Marty, on August 1, 2007 9:13 AM
Democracy, not Theocracy
It borders on the heresy of an American theocracy that could lead to a totalitarian view of acceptable religious expression.
Posted by John Bryson Chane, on August 1, 2007 8:24 AM
God or god?
A genuine conversation about what 'god' means, between a well thought out Christian and a well thought out Hindu, would be a great start.
Posted by Nicholas T. Wright, on August 1, 2007 7:20 AM
FEATURED COMMENTS
lepidopteryx: Anon: "But we have to understand the principles and the purpose of One Nation Under God. We have to understand the founding father's whole p...
Tiffany: First of all, The United States motto, 'One Nation Under God' was not written by the founding fathers as the first opinion at the bottom is ...
