Sunday, June 21, 2009

Point....COUNTER point...to a prayer

I've been enjoying Mustang and Leslie's exchanges, one taking the conservative viewpoint and the other (though conservative) taking the liberal talking point to the same subject. As I read Christian Soldier's (Carol's) post today, I couldn't help hear in my mind what a liberal talking point would be, line by line. Here it is:

The Cadet Prayer -West Point - (Carol adds that this has become her 'official' prayer:)
(Z's COUNTERPOINT: Let me start here: First of all...PRAYER at WEST POINT? I thought we were past that. Religion has no place in West Point. This could hurt an atheist's feelings.)

CADET PRAYER O God, our Father, Thou Searcher of human hearts, (GOD? at West POINT? that has got to go)
help us to draw near to Thee in sincerity and truth. (whose 'sincerity' and what 'truth'? These things are relative)
May our religion be filled with gladness and may our worship
of Thee be natural. ("OUR" religion? Which religion? How non-inclusive, how cruel)
Strengthen and increase our admiration for honest dealing and clean thinking, and suffer not our hatred of hypocrisy and pretense ever to diminish. (You people keep with this 'clean thinking' and 'honesty' as if your faith has a stranglehold on that. You hate hypocrisy? That's a laugh...)
Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life. ('common life', you're so judgmental)
Make us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong and never to be content with a half truth when the whole can be won. (Always 'the right'....who are YOU to say what's 'wrong'?)
Endow us with courage that is born of loyalty to all that is noble and worthy, that scorns to compromise with vice and injustice and knows no fear when truth and right are in jeopardy. (Again, you draw such black/white truths and that can only be viewed as judgmental and hypocritical...)
Guard us against flippancy and irreverence in the sacred things of life. Grant us new ties of friendship and new opportunities of service. Kindle our hearts in fellowship with those of a cheerful countenance, and soften our hearts with sympathy for those who sorrow and suffer. (If you conservative Christians would just stop with the praying for sorrow and suffering and actually do something about it. People need to be supported, you need to be paying for the poor, not praying.)
Help us to maintain the honor of the Corps untarnished and unsullied and to show forth in our lives the ideals of West Point in doing our duty to Thee and to our Country. (after what you people did in Iraq? America's tarnished and sullied by those actions. War mongering is never a good thing and schools like West Point brainwash and encourage people to want to fight)
All of which we ask in the name of the Great Friend and Master of All. Amen. (There you go again......)

Beautiful prayer without my remarks in parentheses and italics, isn't it? PLEASE read it without my additions. There's honor and there's relativity....We need to get back to honor. And we need to get back to faith, to a higher power above ourselves, to encourage selflessness yet going back to our American roots of self-reliance. Thanks, Carol, I had never read that beautiful prayer and I hope more people will. And, let's pray that nobody stops that prayer at West Point...I give it two years, myself. How long do YOU give it?

z (Please see my Father's Day post below.......I want to wish all Dad's a great day..)

z

14 comments:

Brooke said...

It is truly a beautiful prayer!

Sue said...

Z,
What a thoughtful "point/counterpoint" post!
For a minute, I thought you WERE a liberal (LOL!)

I think 2 years until prayer is taken away at West Point is stretching it...

(((Thought Criminal))) said...

Z,

You didn't convince me you are liberal. You didn't even take the easy road.

West Point is a college with guns in the classroom.

Z said...

thanks, Sue.

It is, isn't it, Brooke? I had never heard of it.

Beamish...you know me too well by now. "take the easy road?" ??

Chuck said...

I had never seen this before either. Great prayer, it clearly needs to go.

christian soldier said...

Z- the Cadet Prayer has been around a long time---
There is a silent movement to close West Point..
I posted the article and the counterpoint by a Cadet last month--
People pooh poohed it - I no longer ignore the 'small steps' of the Dark Side --so I'll be watching carefully...
The honor code -"A Cadet may neither lie - cheat - nor steal -nor tolerate those who do"...is based upon the WORD---
Someday I'll write about the ACLU's case in the late '70s on that issue...
Your 'point/counterpoint' brought a smile to my heart-thank you so much..
C-CS

christian soldier said...

Thank you-too-for the photo of the main chapel....

Z said...

CS, what 'counterpoint' had YOU published? Had you done what I did?

I'm so sorry!!

shoprat said...

I wonder what these people would say to Jesus Himself.

christian soldier said...

Z-no I did not 'counterpoint' the prayer-would never have thought to do it --thus--I appreciate yours...

I was referring to an article that came out putting forth the idea of closing West Point and a Cadet's answer to the idea....

BTW-noticed that you commented on Clay Tablet's video --what did you think of the DR's flip chart?--I thought it was an excellent example of the steps to fulfill Christ's command to "Occupy til I come" ..Lk 19..

C-CS

christian soldier said...

Z-thought you would be interested -a Cadet's great take on the very idea of closing West Point...
http://carolmsblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/close-west-point.html

C-CS

Z said...

CS..I will look at that tomorrow.
I'll tell you, it's very reassuring to know others feel like I do about occupying.

Z said...

CS, believe it or not, I have an aversion to women in the military (go figure, I don't know, I just DO and always have) but I sure did love reading that defense of West Point....of course it won't exist in the coming years; our country's SO far past that decency and integrity that why would it exist? Especially when war at any cost is wrong, according to leftwingers and the new world order will fight for us, anyway.......if needed?

christian soldier said...

Z-just posted photos of the Old Chapel - ...
and the 'new' Chapel...the 'new' Chapel is shaped like the CROSS (aerial view shows it clearly)...

I highly recommend worshiping at both- if ever you visit West Point...
C-CS