"Federal Judge Barbara Crabb may wear a black robe and wield a gavel, but she isn't more powerful than prayer.... President Barack Obama's administration and the Justice Department, which is representing the government in the case, have said they will appeal the judge's decision to make the National of Prayer illegal. And last week, Obama issued a proclamation designating Thursday as a National Day of Prayer and called upon citizens "to pray or otherwise give thanks, in accordance with their own faiths and consciences, for our many freedoms and blessings." Melody McDonald, Star-Telegram
What would Lincoln say about these things? Historian Joe Wheeler in his book Abraham Lincoln: A Man of Faith and Courage (p. 20) writes:
"Things did not go well for Lincoln in 1861. On April 14, Fort Sumter capitulated to secessionists forces- the rebels. On July 21, Lincoln and the North were humiliated by the retreat of the Northern army at the Battle of Bull Run. Six days later, Lincoln asked General George B. McClellan to take command of all the Union armies.
In this sober mood, Lincoln, upon the suggestion of Congress, called for a Day of National Prayer. He set it for the last Thursday in November. He chose Thursday because it would not tread on any existing holy days observed by American churches. From this time on, having such events on Thursdays became the norm.
Part of Lincoln’s announcement of the Day National Prayer reads:
And whereas when our beloved country, once, by the blessing of God, united, prosperous, and happy, is now afflicted with factions and civil war, it is peculiarly, and in sorrowful remembrance of our own faults and crimes as a nation and as individuals, to humble ourselves before Him, and to pray for His mercy.
Lincoln called for national prayer more than once- indeed, he did so whenever he felt the overwhelming need for the country to beseech the Lord God for aid or guidance or to thank Him for providing them. These calls to prayer, fasting, and humiliation- and later to gratitude and thanksgiving- became central acts of Lincoln’s presidency. There were nine in all: Two in 1861, one in 1862, three in 1863, and three in 1864. He was getting ready to call for a tenth in 1865 when his life was cut short."
Federal judge Barbara Crabb, it seems, needs to read her American history.
