[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 18 (Monday, May 4, 1998)]
[Page 734]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7088--National Day of Prayer, 1998

April 29, 1998

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    In every era of American history, devout men and women from every 
nation have come to our shores seeking the freedom to worship according 
to their own conscience. Recognizing the sacredness of this fundamental 
human right, our founders wisely guaranteed it in the First Amendment to 
the Constitution.
    Prayer has always been an integral part of American life. In every 
city, town, and rural community across our country, people of every 
religious denomination gather to worship according to their faith. In 
churches, synagogues, temples, and mosques, Americans come together to 
pray. We pray for the health and happiness of loved ones; for inner 
peace and peace among nations; and for the wisdom and courage to face 
the challenges of the new millennium. And always we raise our voices and 
hearts in prayers of thanksgiving for the blessing of freedom.
    Just as Americans rely on prayer for strength and renewal in private 
life, so do we turn to it at moments of great joy or crisis in our 
public life as a Nation. Meeting in Philadelphia to make the momentous 
decisions that would ultimately determine the nature and form of 
American Government, the Continental Congress began daily deliberations 
with a prayer for God's blessings and assistance. In his first inaugural 
address, President George Washington also prayed for guidance from the 
Almighty as he began the enormous task of leading a new, untried 
democracy.
    In this century, with America in the throes of the Great Depression 
and a world teetering on the brink of war, President Franklin Delano 
Roosevelt concluded his first inaugural address with a fervent prayer: 
``In this dedication of a Nation we humbly ask the blessing of God. May 
He protect each and every one of us. May He guide me in the days to 
come.'' And today, as we look ahead to the promise of a new century, 
Americans continue to draw strength from the bedrock of faith and 
religious freedom upon which our democracy rests.
    The Congress, by Public Law 100-307, has called on our citizens to 
reaffirm the role of prayer in our society and to honor the religious 
diversity our freedom permits by recognizing annually a ``National Day 
of Prayer.''
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim May 7, 1998, as a National Day of 
Prayer. I encourage the citizens of this great Nation to pray, each in 
his or her own manner, seeking strength from God to face the problems of 
today, requesting guidance for the uncertainties of tomorrow, and giving 
thanks for the rich blessings that our country has enjoyed throughout 
our history.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth 
day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, 
and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred 
and twenty-second.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., May 1, 1998]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on May 4.