[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 10, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H1193]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 PRAYER

  The Chaplain, the Reverend Margaret Grun Kibben, offered the 
following prayer:
  Almighty God, as these lawmakers take their sides on this factional 
bill before them, we pray Your mercy.
  Forgive them--all of them--for when called upon to respond to a once-
in-a-century pandemic that has rocked our country, upended its economy, 
and widened the chasm of partisan opinion, they have missed the 
opportunity to step above the fray and unite to attend to this national 
crisis.
  In failing to address the acrimony and divisions which have prevailed 
in this room, the servants You have called to lead this country have 
contributed to the spread of an even more insidious contagion of 
bitterness and spite.
  Rather than employing the preventive measures of compassion, 
kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, this armor has been set 
aside in favor of argument, disparaging words, and divisiveness.
  You have warned us that a house divided against itself cannot stand. 
And now we stand in need of healing and reconciliation.
  Merciful Lord, rebuild this house that their labor will not be in 
vain.
  We offer ourselves and our prayers to You in the strength of Your 
name.
  Amen.

                          ____________________