[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 14 (Thursday, February 1, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S734-S736]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, each year we celebrate in the Nation's
Capital a National Prayer Breakfast. It was my privilege to attend
today, the 44th consecutive gathering. The President of the United
States and the First Lady, together with the Vice President and his
wife are, as they were today, regular attendees. Leaders from many
countries, leaders from every State join with members of the judiciary,
executive, and legislative branches of our government. It is invariably
an inspirational, memorable event.
As is customary, Members of Congress preside and today Senator Robert
Bennett, Utah, whose father likewise was a distinguished U.S. Senator,
contributed masterfully as a master of ceremonies. Senators and House
Members share in the program.
Strong messages were given by all, especially President Clinton and
Vice President Gore. The Senate participants were Senator Carol
Moseley-Braun, Illinois, who read beautifully from the scriptures and
Senator Alan Simpson who spoke with deep sincerity and humility.
But the most memorable contribution of all was from the principal
speaker, Senator Sam Nunn, Georgia. The audience, at the breakfast and
watching television, all across America, were given a stirring,
uplifting message. Remarks that are deserving to be recorded for
present and future generations the world over.
It is with pride and humility that I ask unanimous consent to have
printed in the Record the remarks of my two valued friends, Senator
Simpson and Senator Nunn.
There being no objection, the remarks were ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Remarks by Senator Simpson, National Prayer Breakfast, February 1, 1996
Mr. President, First Lady Hillary, Mr. Vice President and
President of our Senate and Tipper Gore, Distinguished
guests. Greetings, my fellow seekers, discoverers, and
wanderers (not necessarily in that order!) always a grand
morning.
One of the great honors of my life was to give the
principle address at this national prayer breakfast in 1989.
I was filled with trepidation that a seeker like me would be
asked.
The night before, the Reverend Billy Graham, one of the
most loving, inspirational, caring men in this world, called
and said, ``Alan, we are praying for you.'' I said, ``You're
praying for me! I'm doing plenty of that for myself!'' So
typical of Billy Graham.
Long ago in public life I learned where to turn when I
didn't know where to turn. One source.
The Senate prayer breakfast group gathers every Wednesday
morning for a convivial half hour between 8 and 9:00. Our
leaders are Bob Bennett, the Republican from Utah and Dan
Akaka a Democrat from Hawaii. Rare gentlemen both.
The presentor of the day--after an opening prayer--shares
much of himself or herself with us for fifteen or twenty
minutes and then a time of discussion and fellowship.
Promptly at the hour of nine we close with a prayer as we
stand with hands joined around the tables. Sometimes the
theme is the Bible. Sometimes it's public life. Sometimes
it's about family and our jobs but always it's about
ourselves and the impact of that greater force in our lives--
a higher being. All faiths. All philosophies. All believers.
These are always very moving times. We share much with each
other and we gain much from each other.
It helps us endure in the partisan and political world in
which we have chosen to labor. Kindness, civility, tolerance
and forgiveness all are part of the essence of our
gatherings. We try to put aside harsh judgment and
criticism.
I remember the words of a wonderful couplet my mother used
to share.
There is so much good in the worst of us.
And so much bad in the best of us.
That it ill behooves any of us
To find fault with the rest of us.
I like that one. I knew you would!
We also talk about our human frailties. We talk about how
easy it is to fall for the blandishments of flattery and be
overcome by ego.
I have often said that those who travel the high road of
humility in Washington DC are not really troubled by heavy
traffic!
It is always a very uplifting time. Yes, actually too a
time of sharing of our own vulnerabilities. It was Will
Rogers, our great American humorist, who said, ``It's great
to be great but it is greater to be human.''
We are very privileged to be able to serve in the United
States Senate. A special obligation. People do observe us. We
are scrutinized. (Indeed we are!) We hope to do more than
just talk a good game. We need to live the things we learn
and share.
Let me close with a poem that is something we try to take
from the weekly Senate prayer breakfast group and something
we might hope to remember from this marvelous convocation
today. That little poem.
We'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day,
We'd rather you would walk with us than merely show the way.
The eye is a better pupil and more willing than the ear.
Fine counsel is confusing, but example's always clear.
We can soon learn how to do it if you'll let us see it done,
We can watch you well in action, but your tongue too fast may
run
And the lecture you deliver may be very wise and true,
But we'd rather get our lessons by observing what you do.
Now there's ``the word'' for the day!
God bless you all.
____
Remarks of Senator Nunn
Thank you Bob Bennett, President and Mrs. Clinton, Vice
President and Mrs. Gore, fellow sinners. Have I left anyone
out? I say to my good friend, Alan Simpson, Billy Graham
called me also, Alan. He said, as he did in his message, that
he was praying for us all. But, he felt particularly
compelled to pray for Alan Simpson and for me. Alan, I don't
know what he meant by that, but you and I appreciate it.
A few years ago during the Bresznev era, Dr. Billy Graham
returned from a highly publicized trip to Moscow and was
confronted when he returned by one of his critics with these
words, ``Dr. Graham, you have set the church back 50 years.''
Billy Graham lowered his head and replied, ``I am deeply
ashamed. I have been trying very hard to set the church back
2,000 years.''
Today we represent different political parties, different
religions and different nations, but as your invitation
states, we gather as brothers and sisters in the spirit of
Jesus who lived 2,000 years ago, and who lives in our hearts
and minds today.
The first prayer breakfast was held in 1953 in a world of
great danger. President Eisenhower was newly inaugurated and
had just returned from Korea where our young soldiers were
fighting desperately. World Communism was on the move.
Eastern Europe
[[Page S735]]
and the Baltics were locked behind the Iron Curtain. All across the
globe, the lights of religious freedom and individual rights
were going out, and the specter of nuclear destruction loomed
over our planet.
I wonder this morning how those who attended that first
national prayer breakfast 43 years ago would have reacted if
God had given them a window to see the world of the 1980's
and 1990's.
They would have seen truly amazing things: Catholic nuns
kneeling to pray in the path of 50-ton tanks--the power of
their faith bringing down the Philippine dictatorship; the
Iron Curtain being smashed, not by tanks of war, but by the
hands of those who built it and those who were oppressed by
it; the Cold War ending, not in a nuclear inferno, but in a
blaze of candles in the churches of Eastern Europe, in the
singing of hymns and the opening of long-closed synagogues. I
believe that God gave Joseph Stalin the answer to his
question, ``How many divisions does the Pope have?''
They also would have seen a black man in South Africa
emerge from prison after 26 years and become the President of
his nation, personifying forgiveness and reconciliation; the
first hesitant but hopeful steps toward peace between Jews
and Arabs in the Middle East, and between Protestants and
Catholics in Northern Ireland. They would see that in 1996 we
are blessed to live in a world where more people enjoy
religious freedom than at any other time in history. Can we
doubt this morning that a loving God has watched over us and
guided us through this dangerous and challenging period?
During the early days of the Russian parliament, the Duma,
I joined several other Senators in attending a meeting with a
number of newly elected members of that body. The second day,
a few of us were invited to a very small ``prayer breakfast''
with a group of Duma members who were just forming a
fellowship, no doubt stimulated by Doug Coe. As in the larger
meeting the day before, the breakfast discussion started with
a degree of coldness and tension. One of the Russians, in
obvious sadness and a little embarrassment, remarked that
Russia was in great economic distress and that the United
States was the only remaining superpower. It was clear that
this was a very sensitive point for them. It had been
abundantly clear the day before.
Senator Dirk Kempthorne and I then pointed out that in the
real sense there is only one superpower in the world, our
heavenly Father who watches over us all. The tension
immediately eased and the spirit of fellowship was built, and
we prayed together to that superpower, the God who loves us
all.
Our world is a strange and tragic place. It is very ironic
in many ways. The Cold War is now over, but in a tragic
sense, the world has now been made safer for ethnic, tribal,
and religious vengeance and savagery. Such tragedy has come
to the people of Somalia, Bosnia, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan,
Haiti and others.
At home, the pillar of our national strength, the American
family, is crumbling. Television and movies saturate our
children with sex and violence. We have watered down our
moral standards to the point where many of our youth are
confused, discouraged and in deep trouble. We are reaping the
harvest of parental neglect, divorce, child abuse, teen
pregnancy, school dropouts, illegal drugs, and streets full
of violence.
It's as if our house, having survived the great earthquake
we call the Cold War, is now being eaten away by termites.
Where should we turn this morning and in the days ahead?
Our problems in America today are primarily problems of the
heart. The soul of our nation is the sum of our
individual characters. Yes, we must balance the federal
budget and there are a lot of other things we need to do
at the Federal level, but unless we change our hearts we
will still have a deficit of the soul.
The human inclination to seek political solutions for
problems of the heart is nothing new. It is natural. Two
thousand years ago, another society found itself in deeper
trouble than our own. An oppressive empire strangled
liberties. Violence and corruption were pervasive.
Many of the people of the day hoped for the triumphant
coming of a political savior, a long-expected king to
establish a new, righteous government. Instead, God sent his
son, a baby, born in a stable. Jesus grew up to become a
peasant carpenter in a backwater town called Nazareth. He
condemned sin but made it clear that he loved the sinner. He
befriended beggars and prostitutes and even tax collectors
while condemning the hypocrisy of those in power. He treated
every individual with love and dignity and taught that we
should do the same. He died like a common criminal, on a
cross, and gave us the opportunity for redemption and the
hope of eternal life.
He also put the role of government in proper perspective
when he said, ``Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's and
unto God that which is God's.''
Shortly after I announced that I would not seek reelection,
a reporter asked me, ``You've been in the Congress for 24
years; what do you consider to be your greatest
accomplishment?'' I paused for a moment and replied,
``Keeping my family together for 24 years and helping my wife
Colleen raise two wonderful children, Michelle and Brian.''
Upon hearing this, the reporter scoffed, ``Don't give me that
soft sound-bite stuff. What laws did you get passed?''
When he said that, I had several thoughts--only a couple of
them I can share with you this morning. Four years ago, my
daughter, Michelle, and a few of her friends started an
organization in Atlanta called Hands on Atlanta, making it
exciting, efficient and fun for young people to volunteer
their time to help those in need. Now, about 5 years later,
10,000 volunteers each month render about 20,000 hours of
personal, one-on-one service. What laws have I passed that
have had this impact?
I also thought about the difference between being a Senator
and being a father. When we in the Senate make a mistake, we
have checks and balances--99 other Senate colleagues, plus
the House of Representatives, plus the President, plus a
final review by the Supreme Court. But, when we as parents
make a mistake with our children, where are the checks and
where are the balances?
Congress can pass laws cracking down on those who refuse to
support their children. But we cannot force husbands to honor
their wives, wives to love their husbands, and both parents
to nurture their children. Congress can pass laws on civil
rights and equal rights, but we cannot force people of
different races to love each other as brothers. Congress can
promote fairness and efficiency in our tax code, but we
cannot force the rich to show compassion toward the poor. We
can join with our NATO allies to separate the warring
factions in Bosnia, as we are doing, and give them a
breathing space, but we cannot force Muslims, Croats and
Serbs to live together as brothers in peace.
I recently heard a story on the radio. It happened in
Bosnia, but I think it has meaning for all of us. A reporter
was covering that tragic conflict in the middle of Sarajevo,
and he saw a little girl shot by a sniper. The back of her
head had been torn away by the bullet. The reporter threw
down his pad and pencil, and stopped being a reporter for a
few minutes. He rushed to the man who was holding the child,
and helped them both into his car.
As the reporter stepped on the accelerator, racing to the
hospital, the man holding the bleeding child said, ``Hurry,
my friend, my child is still alive.''
A moment or two later, ``Hurry, my friend, my child is
still breathing.''
A moment later, ``Hurry, my friend, my child is still
warm.''
Finally, ``Hurry. Oh my God, my child is getting cold.''
When they got to the hospital, the little girl had died. As
the two men were in the lavatory, washing the blood off their
hands and their clothes, the man turned to the reporter and
said, ``This is a terrible task for me. I must go tell her
father that his child is dead. He will be heartbroken.''
The reporter was amazed. He looked at the grieving man and
said, ``I though she was your child.''
The man looked back and said, ``No, but aren't they all our
children?''
Aren't they all our children?
Yes, they are all our children. They are also God's
children as well, and he has entrusted us with their care in
Sarajevo, in Somalia, in New York City, in Los Angeles, in my
hometown of Perry, Georgia and here in Washington, D.C.
In the book of Micah, the prophet asks, ``Shall I give my
firstborn for my transgressions, the fruit of my body for the
sin of my soul?''
The cruelest aspect of our wars and our sins is what they
do to our children. Jesus said, ``Suffer the little children
to come unto me * * * For of such is the kingdom of God.''
Too often today we shorten this commandment to--suffer--
little children.
Mrs. Clinton, thank you for the emphasis you have put on
children and the spotlight you have shined on our challenges.
You are great.
The world is watching America today. People around the
world are watching not just our President or our Congress or
our economy or even our military deployments. They are
watching our cities, our towns, and our families to see how
much we value our children, and whether we care enough to
stop America's moral and cultural erosion. Do we in America
in 1996 love our neighbors as ourselves as explained by Bob
Bennett as our theme for the morning and by Tom Lantos and
his personal example?
I do not have the answer to these questions this morning,
and I don't pretend to. These problems can be solved only in
the hearts and minds of our people and one child at a time. I
do, however, have a few observations.
The Cold War provided us with a clarity of purpose and a
sense of unity as a people. Our survival as a nation was at
stake. We came together often in fear. The challenges that
confront us today are far different, but the stakes are the
same. I pray that our children, all of our children, will be
the bridge that brings us together, not in fear, but in love.
Each year millions of our children are abused, abandoned
and aborted. Millions more receive little care, discipline
and almost no love. While we continue to debate our deeply-
held beliefs as to which of these sins should also be
violations of our criminal code, I pray that we as parents,
as extended families, and as communities, will come together
to provide love and spiritual care to every mother and to
every child, born or unborn.
Government at every level must play a role in these
challenges, but I do not believe that it will be the decisive
role. What, then,
[[Page S736]]
are our duties as leaders, not just in the world of politics and
government, but in every field represented here this morning
and throughout our land? Like basketball stars Charles
Barkley and Dennis Rodman, we are role models whether we like
it or not.
I believe that the example we set, particularly for
our young people, may be the most important responsibility
of public service. We must demonstrate with our daily
lives that it is possible to be involved in politics and
still retain intellectual honesty and moral and ethical
behavior.
We are all sinners, so we will slip and we will fall. But I
have felt God's sustaining hand through every phase of my
life--growing up in Perry, Georgia, raising a family, my
relationship with my wife Colleen, in Senate floor debates,
in committee meetings, visiting our troops in war, or being
part of a mission for peace.
In the years ahead, when I think back on my public service,
I am certain that my most cherished memories will be those
moments spent with my colleagues in the Senate prayer
breakfasts and in my meetings with leaders from around the
world, usually arranged by Doug Coe, in the spirit of Jesus.
I have also been blessed by many friends in the Senate and
also a small fellowship with a group of Senate brothers like
the late Dewey Bartlett, Republican of Oklahoma; Lawton
Chiles, Democrat of Florida; Pete Domenici, Republican of New
Mexico; Harold Hughes, Democrat of Iowa; and Mark Hatfield,
Republican of Oregon. No one can accuse that group of being
of like minds politically.
Yet, these brothers have listened to my problems, shared in
my joys, held me accountable and upheld me in their prayers.
Fellowship in the spirit of Jesus does amazing things. It
puts political and philosophical differences, even profound
differences, in a totally different perspective.
I believe that 2,000 years ago Jesus was speaking to each
of us when he delivered his Sermon on the Mount. And, my
prayer this morning for our leaders and our nation is in the
spirit of his words then.
May we who would be leaders always be aware that we must
first be servants. May we who compete in the arena of
government and politics remember that we are commanded to
love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. I can't
find any exception for the news media or our opponents. May
we who seek to be admired by others remember that when we
practice our piety before men in order to be seen by them, we
will have no reward in heaven. May we who have large egos and
great ambitions recall that the Kingdom of Heaven is promised
to those who are humble and poor in spirit. May we who depend
on publicity as our daily bread recall that when we do a
secret kindness to others, our Father, who knows all secrets,
will reward us. May the citizens whom we serve as stewards of
government be sensitive to the fact that we are human beings
subject to error and that while we need their critiques, we
also desperately need their prayers. May we never forget that
the final judgment of our tenure here on earth will not be
decided by a majority vote, and that an election is not
required to bring us home.
May God bless each of you.
____________________