[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
[February 2, 1991]
[Page 97]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 97]]


Radio Address to the Nation on the National Day of Prayer
February 2, 1991

    At this moment, America, the finest, most loving nation on Earth, is
at war, at war against the oldest enemy of the human spirit: evil that 
threatens world peace.
    At this moment, men and women of courage and endurance stand on the 
harsh desert and sail the seas of the Gulf. By their presence they're 
bearing witness to the fact that the triumph of the moral order is the 
vision that compels us. At this moment, those of us here at home are 
thinking of them and of the future of our world. I recall Abraham 
Lincoln and his anguish during the Civil War. He turned to prayer, 
saying: ``I've been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming 
conviction that I have nowhere else to go.''
    So many of us, compelled by a deep need for God's wisdom in all we 
do, turn to prayer. We pray for God's protection in all we undertake, 
for God's love to fill all hearts, and for God's peace to be the moral 
North Star that guides us. So, I have proclaimed Sunday, February 3d, 
National Day of Prayer. In this moment of crisis, may Americans of every 
creed turn to our greatest power and unite together in prayer.
    Let us pray for the safety of the troops, these men and women who 
have put their lives and dreams on hold because they understand the 
threat our world faces.
    Let us pray for those who make the supreme sacrifice. In our 
terrible grief, we pray that they leave the fields of battle for finer 
fields where there is no danger, only tranquillity; where there is no 
fear, only peace; and where there is no evil, only the love of the 
greatest Father of all.
    Let us pray for those who are held prisoner, that God will protect 
these, his special children, and will enlighten the minds and soften the 
hearts of their captors.
    Let us pray for the families of those who serve. Let us reach out to 
them with caring, to make them part of a greater family filled with love 
and support.
    Let us pray for the innocents caught up in this war, all of them, 
wherever they may be. And let us remember deep in our hearts the value 
of all human life, everywhere in the world.
    Let us pray for our nation. We ask God to bless us, to help us, and 
to guide us through whatever dark nights may still lay ahead.
    And above all, let us pray for peace, ``peace . . . which passeth 
all understanding.''
    On this National Day of Prayer and always, may God bless the United 
States of America.

                    Note: This address was recorded January 31 in the 
                        Oval Office at the White House and was released 
                        by the Office of the Press Secretary on February 
                        2. The proclamation is listed in Appendix E at 
                        the end of this volume.