Turning to prayer in times of joy and celebration,
strife and tragedy is an integral part of our national heritage.
When the first settlers landed on the rocky shores of the New World,
they celebrated with prayer, and the practice has continued through
our history. In 1775, the Continental Congress asked the citizens
of the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a Nation. General
George Washington, encamped at Valley Forge, also sought God's
guidance as Americans fought for their independence. The faith
of our Founding Fathers established the precedent that prayers
and national days of prayer are an honored part of our American
way of life.
Continuing in that tradition, many of the men
and women who have served at the highest levels of our Nation also
have turned to prayer seeking wisdom from the Almighty. President
Lincoln, who proclaimed a day of "humiliation, fasting, and
prayer" in 1863, once stated: "I have been driven many
times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere
else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient
for the day." Today, millions of Americans continue to hold
dear that conviction President Lincoln so eloquently expressed.
Gathering in churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and homes,
we ask for strength, direction, and compassion for our neighbors
and ourselves.
The theme of the 2001 National Day of Prayer
is "One Nation Under God." In a prayer written specially
for the occasion, Americans are asked to pray for "a moral
and spiritual renewal to help us meet the many problems we face." Special
observances are scheduled for all 50 States, with local volunteers
planning a variety of activities including prayer breakfasts, concerts,
rallies, and student gatherings. These events will bring people
of all faiths together, each according to his or her own beliefs,
to give thanks to the Almighty and to ask for strength and guidance.
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, GEORGE W. BUSH, President
of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested
in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States of America,
do hereby proclaim May 3, 2001, as a National Day of Prayer. I
encourage the citizens of our Nation to pray each in his or her
own manner, seeking God's blessings on our families and govern-ment
officials and personal renewal, moral awakening, and a new spirit
of harmony across our land. I urge all Americans to join in observing
this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand
this twenty-seventh day of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand
one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the
two hundred and twenty-fifth.