[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 100 (Thursday, July 21, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S8589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

                                 prayer

  The guest Chaplain offered the following prayer:
  Our Father in Heaven, Thou Who art loving, compassionate, merciful, 
patient, and gracious to forgive, we desire to acknowledge You in all 
our ways, that You may direct our steps. Especially do we need You in 
the great moments of life. Graciously regard these Your servants. We 
acknowledge that ``righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a 
reproach to any people.'' May we desire character more than reputation, 
truth more than expediency, and honesty more than vanity. Help us to be 
the good Samaritan ready to help all in need regardless of race, face, 
or place. We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving 
and the strength we gain in loving. Let righteousness, justice, and 
mercy be carried along on the current of Thy love, mercy, and truth.
  The men and women of this august body of elected officials carry a 
tremendous responsibility, and the sense of that responsibility is with 
them every day. We ask on their behalf that You would strengthen each 
one as they faithfully serve this great Republic in which we live. It 
has been a long week for most, and still there is more work to do. 
Grant unto these our Senators that they may find joy in the task. As 
the unseen guest of all these proceedings, may You light their way. At 
the end of the day, grant that we may live not in despair but, rather, 
in a desire for a better America, which will be brought to fruition not 
by our words but by our deeds.
  We ask it in the Name of the Prince of Peace. Amen.

                          ____________________