[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 18958]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 PRAYER

  The Chaplain, the Reverend Daniel P. Coughlin, offered the following 
prayer:
  Lord, in the book of Joshua, the life of anyone who killed another 
was forfeit. Once the monarchy was established, it would be the duty of 
the king to see that justice was done. But until then Israel was a 
tribal society and it fell upon the family of the victim to set things 
right. No wonder, Lord, there is so much lingering hatred and bloody 
violence in the world of tribal communities, even to this day.
  So, Lord, You spoke to Joshua and commanded him to appoint ``cities 
of refuge'' where the person who kills another inadvertently or without 
intent could find refuge from the dead man's next of kin. In a time 
when there are more refugees than in any other time in history, we pray 
for all of those refugees who seek justice and long for peace. Help 
fragile nations to be grounded in law and order. Protect peacemakers 
and those who enforce the law, both here and in unstable areas like 
Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Iraq.
  Help people everywhere to bury vengeance with forgiveness, temper 
justice with mercy, and transform indifference with compassion.
  In You, Lord, America takes refuge, now and forever. Amen.

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