{"id":654,"date":"2009-01-20T03:01:26","date_gmt":"2009-01-20T03:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/01\/should-rick-warren-say-in-the-name-of-jesus-at-the-end-of-his-inaugural-prayer-section-2.html"},"modified":"2009-01-20T03:01:26","modified_gmt":"2009-01-20T03:01:26","slug":"should-rick-warren-say-in-the-name-of-jesus-at-the-end-of-his-inaugural-prayer-section-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/01\/should-rick-warren-say-in-the-name-of-jesus-at-the-end-of-his-inaugural-prayer-section-2.html","title":{"rendered":"Should Rick Warren Say \u201cIn the Name of Jesus\u201d at the End of His Inaugural Prayer? Section 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 6 of series: Rick Warren, the Obama Inauguration, and Praying in Jesus’ Name
\n<\/em>Permalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nYesterday I laid out the strongest case I could make against<\/em> having Rick Warren say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of his inaugural prayer. Today I\u2019m arguing the other side.
\nIf you read this before 11:30 a.m. Easter time, then you won\u2019t know what Warren actually did. If you read it afterwards, you may very well know how he prayed. The suspense will be over. Nevertheless, I want to reflect upon this issue because it\u2019s important. The question of how Christians pray in civic gatherings \u2013 or whether they should or not \u2013 is part of the much larger conversation about the role of religion in America\u2019s public square. If you\u2019ve been following the furor surrounding Warren\u2019s involvement in the Obama inauguration, you know this conversation is lively, sometimes even downright nasty. For Christians, we need to answer two crucial questions:<\/p>\n

1. As American citizens, how should we properly speak of and live out our faith in our pluralistic society?
\n2. As citizens of God\u2019s kingdom, how should we properly speak of and live out our faith in this pluralistic society?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Though both of these are the same question, the answers may be quite different. One will be based on issues of law and culture. The other will depend on biblical and theological interpretation. In the end, of course, each American Christian needs to answer both questions satisfactorily. At any rate, let\u2019s get back to the issue at hand.
\nThe Case for<\/em><\/strong> Saying \u201cIn Jesus\u2019 Name\u201d at the End of Rick Warren\u2019s Inaugural Prayer<\/strong>
\nFirst of all, let me address this question as a Christian. One of our highest callings and greatest privileges is to glorify Jesus. Christians want people to know about him and to be drawn to him. Of course many people are not especially pleased by this desire. It\u2019s popular these days to be not just non-Christian, but anti-Christian. Nevertheless, Christians are committed to letting folks know about Jesus. If a Christian had the opportunity to use the name of Jesus in a prayer that would be heard by millions, perhaps even billions of people, one might consider this a valuable opportunity to fulfill our Christian calling. (It would be rather like painting \u201cJohn 3:16\u201d under your eyes when you lead your college football team to the national championship, as did Florida quarterback Tim Tebow a couple of weeks ago.)
\nBut if we think about this issue, not from a Christian perspective, but in light of American culture. Given the diversity of our society today, and given the wide range of religious beliefs, how could it be a positive thing for a Christian to say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of a prayer? Wouldn\u2019t something more generic be helpful in the public square? Might one want to pray, as did the Episcopal bishop, Rev. Gene Robinson, in an inaugural event, to \u201cO God of our many understandings\u201d? (No joke<\/a>.)
\nOne of the things I value most about this country is our heritage of religious freedom. One of the greatest things about the United States of America is that people are free to practice the religion of their choice, within generous boundaries. One could not sacrifice another human being to the gods. But one could certainly say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of a public prayer. To do this, even when not everyone in America could say \u201cAmen,\u201d\u00a0 would be a celebration of our freedom as well as our diversity as a nation. I\u2019m quite sure the multitude of other prayer givers during the long Obama inauguration, including a Hindu, a Jew, a Muslim, and a wide variety of Christians, will pray according to their convictions and traditions. Though I might not pray to Allah myself, I\u2019m blessed to be in a country where a Muslim can do this in freedom and without fear. Equally, I\u2019m blessed to live in a country where an evangelical Christian can say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of his public prayer.
\nSome folks seem to prefer a lowest common denominator approach to public expressions of faith. That\u2019s what I\u2019d call praying to the \u201cGod of our many understandings.\u201d But I think our civic life is enriched by the genuine diversity of our convictions and traditions. I don\u2019t mine if a Muslim prays to Allah, or a Hindu to Krishna, because that\u2019s what they really do, and I want to be exposed to their genuine religious faith and practice.
\nOf course we can exercise our personal faith in public in a way that\u2019s offensive. But I think this isn\u2019t necessary. In his 2001 prayer at the Bush inaugural, Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell (who is African American, and now an Obama supporter), ended this way: \u201cWe respectfully submit this humble prayer in the name that’s above all other names, Jesus, the Christ. Let all who agree say, ‘Amen.'” Understandably, he caught some heat for praying this way. More recently, in a civic gathering, Rev. Caldwell closed, \u201cRespecting persons of all faiths, I humbly submit this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.\u201d Surely anyone who would be offended by that closing would be offended by just about any prayer in a public gathering.
\nSo, I think our country is richer and better if people of faith can exercise their faith in public as well as private. If Rick Warren usually prays in Jesus\u2019 name, then America is better off if he says this in the inauguration.
\nSo What Would I Do?<\/strong>
\nNow that I\u2019ve put forward my best arguments against and for using the phrase \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d in the inaugural prayer, I should explain what I would do. At least that was my intent. But, after thinking about this for several days, I must admit that I\u2019m less clear than I was before. I\u2019ll tell you why.
\nGiven the fact that praying in Jesus\u2019 name, from a biblical point of view, does not require one to say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name,\u201d and given the fact that an inaugural prayer is meant to include a wide range of people, not just Christians of a certain stripe, and given the sensitivity many people feel over the name of Jesus, owing, in part, to terrible things Christians have done using his name, I was planning to admit that I would not use the name of Jesus if I were in Rick Warren\u2019s shoes. In an effort to imitate Jesus\u2019 own outreach to those who were on the edges, and who were surely not especially religious, I would not say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d to close my prayer. At least that\u2019s what I thought I would do.
\nBut the more I\u2019ve reflected upon my last point about what makes America wonderful, I\u2019m reconsidering my position. I\u2019m not doing this for Christian reasons so much as more American ones, if you will. I would rather live in a nation where people were free to be honest about their beliefs, and even to express them openly in a public forum, than in a nation where we all had to pretend that we all worshiped the \u201cGod of our many understandings.\u201d
\nSo, as of this moment, if I were in Rick Warren\u2019s shoes (which, by the way, I hope I never will be; I couldn\u2019t take the heat), I would say something like \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of my prayer. But I wouldn\u2019t just do this. Rather, in advance of the inauguration, I would take the time to explain what it means to pray in the name of Jesus (as I have done in this blog series) and why I think America is better if people live out their faith with authenticity. I would acknowledge that not everyone in America could echo the \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d part of my prayer. So I would not say, \u201cwe<\/em> pray in the name of Jesus\u201d but \u201cI<\/em> pray in the name of Jesus.\u201d Among other things, that would simply be a statement of fact. I might very well be inclined to borrow the recent line of Kirbyjon Cladwell, \u201cRespecting persons of all faiths, I humbly submit this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ.\u201d
\nI do reserve the right, however, to change my mind again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 6 of series: Rick Warren, the Obama Inauguration, and Praying in Jesus’ Name Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series Yesterday I laid out the strongest case I could make against having Rick Warren say \u201cin Jesus\u2019 name\u201d at the end of his inaugural prayer. Today I\u2019m arguing the other side. If…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-praying-in-jesuss-name"],"yoast_head":"\nShould Rick Warren Say \u201cIn the Name of Jesus\u201d at the End of His Inaugural Prayer? Section 2 - Mark D. 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Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=654"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}