Reverend Wright’s Prayer

In the U.S., as in our countries, politicians like to receive the blessing of God in their protocols. The practice has become customary, but few pay attention to what the priest, bishop or pastor is saying.

A Republican congressman from the state of Kansas invited Joe Wright, the senior pastor of the Central Christian Church in Wichita, to give a prayer before the opening session of the state legislature on Jan. 23, 2008.* While Pastor Wright was speaking to [members of the House], one Democrat irascibly stormed out of the room, three others sharply criticized what the pastor had said and another condemned the “intolerance” of what the pastor had said.

But what part of it was so offensive? Rev. Wright began by saying, “Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and seek your direction and guidance. We know your Word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that’s exactly what we’ve done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and inverted our values. We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of your Word and called it moral pluralism. We have worshipped other gods and called it multiculturalism. We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.”

Wright continued with a quick glance toward his audience. “We have neglected the needy and called it self-preservation. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building esteem. We have abused power and called it political savvy. We have coveted our neighbors’ possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.”

The words of religion have caused a stir in the old building of the Kansas House. The Rev. Wright argued that although he was branded as a “right-wing extremist,” because he did not intend to offend anyone, he would not ask for forgiveness. Wright had simply interpreted the teachings of the Gospel correctly.

Wright’s religious invocations have become famous everywhere. Messages across America and around the world congratulated him. While the political parties were upset, his message of God’s Word won the motivation that we all hope is taken as a real-life lesson, not the fake world in which some are living.

*Editor’s Note: This prayer was actually delivered Jan. 23, 1996, by Pastor Joe Wright to the Kansas House of Representatives in Topeka.