Posted by
Icarus on Sunday, February 08, 2009 9:14:06 PM
The
Orthodox liturgy of St. John Chrysostom includes the following prayer during the Great Litany and the Antiphons:
"For our country, the president, and all those in public service, let us pray to the Lord."
After the inauguration of Barak Obama, the Greek Orthodox parish I attend changed this line to:
"For our country, President Obama, and all those in public service, let us pray to the Lord."
The first time I heard this I was thrown for quite a loop. Never once did this priest, or any other Orthodox priest I heard, pray for President George W. Bush by name. After the liturgy I told the priest how much this change had bothered me. He graciously listened and I know I came away better for the interaction. A conflict was explained and I understand his position, even if the situation remains, to me, not quite resolved.
I know, as a Christian I am tasked to pray not only for those I care about but also for those I dislike, even hate. Naming President Obama in the liturgy certainly tasks me to take up this challenge, one with which I struggle mightely. Even so, I am still bothered by this alteration in the liturgy. I am not a cradle Orthodox. I was chrismated into the church in 2000. I do not know if praying for government leaders by name is done in regularly in Greece or any other majority Orthodox country. My current priest told me he decided to add Obama's name to the liturgy after a discussion with a woman who, for years, attended a Greek liturgy where the only English she heard was Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson's name.
I live in the overwhelmingly liberal environs of Seattle, where Obama stickers are as ubiquitous as Christian fish symbols are around Saddleback Church in Orange County, CA. I would bet that 99% of my fellow parishioners are delighted with this change.
My question for them, and it remains for the priest, where was this concern for the specific person in the White House when it was President George W. Bush? I've heard plenty of laughter at the mention of Pres. Bush's name in this church, but never did I hear anyone offer a prayer for the man, by name.
I wonder how my liberal fellow Orthodox would feel if they were attending a church where for the past eight years Pres. Bush was prayed for by name and then on January 20th 2009, the name was dropped and the priest just prayed for "the president". I have a very strong suspicion that if any liberals actually were attending a church that prayed for George W. Bush by name (a situation that is highly unlikely), they would quit as soon as the change was made.
I will have to wait at least four, maybe even, God forbid, eight, years before this priest possibly faces a test and, because of this change, has to pray for a Republican. Lord how
I pray it becomes President Sarah Palin. I would pay good money to see an Orthodox priest in Seattle utter the following during liturgy, "For our country, President Palin, and all those in public service, let us pray to the Lord." I don't think it would ever happen, if she were to win the 2012 or 2016 election. Liberal Seattle-ites would be walking out the door never to return.
I shall return to this specific Greek Orthodox church mostly because I know that praying for people I do not like is one of the hardest things for me to do. I wonder if my liberal Orthodox neighbors could stomach the same challenge. Or would they be among the first to join the Hate Palin mob? Given the giggles I heard when Pres. Bush was merely referred to as "our current president" I think I have my answer.