[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16645-16646]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



              GUEST CHAPLAIN FATHER THOMAS S. ACKER, S.J.

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I commend the Senate's guest Chaplain today, 
Father Thomas S. Acker, S.J., for his eloquent prayer opening today's 
session of the United States Senate.
  For the last 18 years, Fr. Acker has been serving as President of 
Wheeling Jesuit University in Wheeling, West Virginia.
  During that time, Wheeling Jesuit University has grown to become one 
of the leading universities in the State of West Virginia, and much of 
that growth is due to the insight and hard work of this Jesuit priest. 
During Fr. Acker's tenure at Wheeling Jesuit, the enrollment has 
doubled--doubled--and the number of buildings and square footage on 
campus has more than doubled. The addition of the Robert C. Byrd 
National Technology Transfer Center, the Erma Ora Byrd Center for 
Educational Technologies, and the Alan B. Mollohan Challenger Learning 
Center on campus places Wheeling Jesuit University in a unique position 
for growth into the 21st Century, which will begin next year, and has 
made a difference in the lives of the residents of West Virginia and 
beyond.
  Recently, Fr. Acker was presented, by Administrator Dan Goldin, with 
the Distinguished Public Service Medal of the National Aeronautics and 
Space Administration, NASA, the highest honor given to a civilian from 
that agency. This award reflects the high confidence that NASA and its 
Administrator have in the stewardship of Fr. Acker in connection with 
agency programs administered--where? at Wheeling Jesuit University.
  Fr. Acker, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, entered the Jesuit order in 
1947. That was my first year in the West Virginia House of delegates. 
He has a Ph.D. in biology. I don't have a Ph.D. in anything. But I have 
grandsons who have Ph.Ds. I have two grandsons who have Ph.D.s in 
physics; not political science but physics. But Fr. Acker has a Ph.D. 
in Biology from Stanford University. He has taught at John Carroll 
University. He has taught at the University of Detroit. He has taught 
at San Francisco University. He has served as Dean of Arts and Sciences 
at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and worked in 
the country of Nepal, first as a Fulbright professor and then as 
Project Director of the U.S. Peace Corps.
  Fr. Tom Acker's tenure as the President at Wheeling Jesuit University 
will end on Monday, July 31, 2000, the last year of the 20th century, 
but he will not be leaving the State of West Virginia. He has grown to 
love that State. Rather, he will remain in West Virginia, working in 
the southern sector to continue his great service to the great State of 
West Virginia.
  I look forward to my continued relationship with this strong, 
competent, and compassionate man of the cloth,

[[Page 16646]]

and I congratulate him on his decision to remain in West Virginia.
  I listened carefully to his prayer today. He used the words, ``In God 
We Trust.'' I was in the House of Representatives in 1954, on June 7, 
when the House of Representatives passed legislation to include the 
words ``under God'' in the pledge of allegiance--June 7, 1954; ``under 
God.'' There are some people in this country who would like to take 
those words out of that pledge, but not Fr. Acker. I don't think 
anybody here in the Senate would be for that. That was June 7, 1954.
  June 7, 1955, 1 year to the day, the House of Representatives voted 
to include the words ``In God We Trust,'' to have those words, as the 
national motto, put on all coins and all currency of the United States. 
Those words were already on some of the coins, but on June 7, 1955, the 
House of Representatives voted to have the words ``In God We Trust''--
there they are-- ``In God We Trust,'' have that as the national motto 
and have those words on the coins and currency of the United States.
  I was in the House on both occasions. I am the only person in 
Congress today who was in Congress when we voted to include the words 
``under God'' in the Pledge of Allegiance. I thank our visiting 
minister today for his use of those words.
  He also used the same words from the scriptures that Benjamin 
Franklin used in the Constitutional Convention in 1787 when the clouds 
of dissension and despair held like a pall over the Constitutional 
Convention. Everything was about to break up. They were having a lot of 
dissension, I say to the Senator from Nevada and the Senator from 
Florida. They were not agreeing on very many things. They were very 
discouraged. But Benjamin Franklin stood to his feet and suggested 
there be prayer at the convention, and he used those scriptures in his 
statement:

       Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that 
     build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh 
     but in vain.

  Thank you, Father Acker, for using those words and for having as the 
theme of your prayer this morning ``In God We Trust.'' Thank you.
  I thank our Chaplain also, and I thank you, again, Father Acker. We 
hope you will enjoy your work in southern West Virginia. We are 
privileged to have you in my part of the State finally, southern West 
Virginia. My part is the whole State. We thank you, and may God bless 
you.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, before the Senator from West Virginia and 
the visiting priest depart, I say to the man who runs this fine school 
in West Virginia--and I believe the Senator from Florida will say--what 
a treasure we have in the Senator from West Virginia.
  Today is a day of solemnity in the Senate. We are going to swear in a 
new Senator as a result of the death of one of our colleagues. It is a 
day of reflection for all of us. Speaking for myself, and I am sure the 
Senator from Florida, every day we reflect on how fortunate we are to 
have someone who is a living example of the words that are engraved in 
the back of this Chamber: ``In God We Trust.'' He is someone to whom we 
all look --both the minority and majority--for ethical standards, for a 
sense of morality that he brings to this body. I say to the priest from 
West Virginia, the State of West Virginia is well served and has been 
well served by Senator Robert Byrd.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.
  Mr. MACK. Mr. President, I, too, express my appreciation for the 
beautiful words of the Senator from West Virginia this morning. And to 
Father Acker: On behalf of the entire Senate, we welcome you today and 
appreciate greatly your words of prayer.
  This is a special day for all of us, as the Senator from Nevada 
indicated. We will be swearing in a new Senator from Georgia. We do so 
with heavy hearts, however.
  I seek recognition now for a few moments to say a few words on the 
life of our colleague, Senator Paul Coverdell.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I thank my colleague, the distinguished 
Senator from Nevada, who has been very close to me for these several 
years in which we have served together in the Senate. I appreciate his 
friendship. I thank him for his good words today. I am grateful, 
flattered, and humbled by them. I thank the distinguished Senator from 
Florida.

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