    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
    [May 6, 2004]
    [Pages 788-790]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the National Day of Prayer
    May 6, 2004

        Thank you all. Please sit down. Please be seated. Thank you all.
    Thanks for coming. Good afternoon, and welcome to the White House. I'm
    honored to join you at this important annual event.
        Since the Continental Congress sat in Philadelphia, America has,
    from time to time, set aside a national day of prayer. Under a law
    signed by President Ronald Reagan, that day
    comes every year on the

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    first Thursday in May. That would be today. [Laughter]
        Today in our Nation's Capital and around the country, we pause to
    acknowledge our reliance on Almighty God, to join in gratitude for His
    blessings and to seek His guidance in our lives and for our Nation.
        Prayer and songs of praise go together, and we're really thankful
    this afternoon for the beautiful music of the Washington Bach Consort,
    led by J. Reilly Lewis. Thank you all for
    being here. And we are thankful for the voice of Beth Cram
    Porter. I mean, what a voice. [Laughter]
    Thank you.
        We are as grateful as well to all the organizers of the National Day
    of Prayer and especially for the gracious leadership of Shirley
    Dobson. We're also glad you brought
    Jim with you. [Laughter]
        Colonel Oliver North is the 2004 National
    Day of Prayer Honorary Chairman. Thank you for taking on the job. I
    appreciate it. I appreciate Dr. Barry Black,
    the Chaplain of the United States Senate. I asked him if he had any one-
    liners before I came up here. [Laughter] I appreciate Father Daniel
    Coughlin, who will join us shortly. And
    Rabbi, thank you for coming. Rabbi Weinreb, I'm honored that you're here. I appreciate your
    reading. I also want to welcome Vonette Bright, the former National Day of Prayer Task Force
    chairman. Vonette, we're honored you're with us. Thank you for coming.
        At so many crucial points in the life of America, we have been a
    nation at prayer. Abraham Lincoln, from this house, called the Nation to
    prayer in the darkest days of the Civil War. Franklin Roosevelt, 60
    years ago on D-day, led the Nation in prayer over the radio, asking for
    God to watch over our sons in battle.
        A prayerful spirit has always been a central part of our national
    tradition, and it remains a vital part of our national character.
    Americans of every faith and every tradition turn daily to God in
    reverence and humility. We bring our cares to Him knowing He is our help
    in ages past, our hope for years to come.
        It was Lincoln who called Americans ``the almost chosen people.''
    [Laughter] And at--that word ``almost'' makes quite a difference.
    [Laughter] Americans do not presume to equate God's purposes with any
    purpose of our own. God's will is greater than any man or any nation
    built by men. He works His will. He finds His children within every
    culture and every tribe. And while every human enterprise must end, His
    kingdom will have no end.
        Our part, our calling is to align our hearts and action with God's
    plan, insofar as we can know it. A humble heart is not an indifferent
    heart. We cannot be neutral in the face of injustice or cruelty or evil.
    God is not on the side of any nation, yet we know He is on the side of
    justice. And it is the deepest strength of America that from the hour of
    our founding, we have chosen justice as our goal.
        Our greatest failures as a nation have come when we lost sight of
    that goal, in slavery, in segregation, and in every wrong that has
    denied the value and dignity of life. Our finest moments have come when
    we have faithfully served the cause of justice for our own citizens and
    for the people of other lands. And through our Nation's history, we have
    turned to prayer for wisdom to know the good and for the courage to do
    the good.
        Many people in every age have made the same request of the wise and
    the holy: Teach us to pray. One of the answers begins with ``Our Father,
    who art in Heaven.'' That answer has guided people through two
    millennia. In that example, we learn to give praise where it is due. We
    recognize that all that we have and all that we are come as gifts, and
    it is natural to be grateful to the Giver.
        Americans, on this National Day of Prayer, are thankful. We're
    thankful for our freedom, for so many blessings, large and small, and
    we're thankful for this wonderful land we call home.

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        In prayer, we offer petitions, because the Maker of the Universe
    knows our cares and our needs. For our Nation today, the need is great,
    as young men and women face danger in our defense, for the sake of
    freedom, and for the sake of peace. We pray that God's hand will protect
    them and deliver them safely home. We pray for the loved ones who
    anxiously await their return. And we pray for the families that have
    known great loss, that they might receive God's peace in the midst of
    their sadness.
         Prayer also teaches us to trust, to accept that God's plan unfolds
    in His time, not our own. That trust is not always easy, as we discover
    in our own lives, but trust is the source of ultimate confidence. We
    affirm that all of life and all of history rests entirely on the
    character of our creation and our Creator. And His love and His mercy
    extend to all and endure forever.
        May God bless you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:15 p.m. in the East Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to J. Reilly Lewis, music director
    and founder, Washington Bach Consort; Shirley Dobson, chairman, National
    Day of Prayer Task Force, and her husband, James; Rev. Daniel P.
    Coughlin, Chaplain, U.S. House of Representatives; and Rabbi Tzvi Hersh
    Weinreb, executive vice president, Orthodox Union. The National Day of
    Prayer proclamation of April 30 is listed in Appendix D at the end of
    this volume.