[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18310]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

                                 PRAYER

  The Chaplain, the Reverend Daniel P. Coughlin, offered the following 
prayer:
  Lord God, when You speak Your word, true servants stop and listen 
attentively. Open our receptivity with renewed faith. Practiced in 
public speaking and surrounded by debate, all too often it becomes 
difficult for us to truly listen to one another. In a world that prides 
itself on accelerated information and sophisticated communications 
systems, the art of asking the deeper questions is often lost in noisy 
chatter.
  Lord, help all of us to be better skilled in honest dialogue and more 
patient in building consensus. No one of us holds onto the whole truth. 
But with Your help, we can admit our limitations and share what we 
have. That will prove to be enough--to offer clarity and promise--
enough to move forward just a bit, both now and forever.
  Amen.

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