[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 7, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H1]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page H1]]

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                        House of Representatives

  This being the day fixed by the 20th amendment to the Constitution of 
the United States and Public Law 107-328 for the meeting of the 
Congress of the United States, the Members-elect of the 108th Congress 
met in their Hall, and at noon were called to order by the Clerk of the 
House of Representatives, Hon. Jeff Trandahl.
  The Chaplain, the Reverend Daniel P. Coughlin, offered the following 
prayer:
  Lord of history, our eternal God, You faithfully gather Your people 
in faith. You are always attentive to our prayers. The Journal of 
Congress records the fact that in 1774, the Reverend Duche led the 
Continental Congress in a prayer based on Psalm 35. Today, at the 
beginning of the 108th Congress, we return to the lines he quoted: 
``Fight, O Lord, against those who fight me; war against those who make 
war upon me. Take up the shield and buckler and rise up in my 
defense.''
  Lord, the ominous sound of impending violence grips the soul of this 
Nation today as it did at its beginnings. So be with us, Lord, as You 
have been throughout our history, both in times of war and in times of 
peace.
  But the martial imagery does not narrow our gaze today only on 
battlefields and armaments. For our battle is against all forms of evil 
and any injustice. With the psalmist may the new Congress pray that 
truth will always uncover falsehood, and its righteous deeds will 
destroy cynicism. Knowing our enemy is anyone who denies God-given 
human rights, may the Members of this government, their families and 
staffs be committed to bring peace and unity to others as Your servants 
now and forever. Amen.

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