Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Umm...come again??

I was unable to watch the inauguration of our new president, but I was able to listen to it on the radio as I picked Katie and Claire up from the airport. While Obama was not my choice for president, I will say a little prayer for him tonight to have the courage and wisdom to lead the country in the right direction. I will also say a prayer for the outgoing president--a prayer of thanks for all he's done to keep this country safe for the last several years. It was quite a sight to see the 'sea of humanity' that showed up to show their support for our new president.

The little blunder during the swearing in oath and that UGE bow-thing on Aretha's hat were not high points during the inauguration, but what about that benediction? That was just kind of weird. Especially the last part:

"Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around ... when yellow will be mellow ... when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right. ... Amen! Amen! Amen!" In case you missed it, click HERE.

Umm...come again?? Katie and I were just laughing and wondering if he was really saying those things, especially during the inauguration!

As I've thought about the day's events, the one line that I keep repeating in my mind is (surprisingly) from the benediction. As Lowrey was praying for unity he said, "we come in a spirit of unity and solidarity,...to turn to each other and not on each other." Loved that. After all, "He's got the whole world in His hands." (Also from the benediction.)

2 comments:

Marissa said...

Yes, her bow was uge! No other way to describe it.
I watched the inauguration on tv but I must of left before the racist festivities began cuz I didn't see this. I hate when people like this guy complain about racism towards blacks yet find it okay to say something like that. Maybe I am taking it too seriously but it kind of ticks me off...okay, really ticks me off.

LinnieBell said...

That whole last part of the dedicatory prayer was just odd. A white person would never have gotten away with saying what he said! It's a classic example of reverse racism, and somehow it's tolerated! Like I said, Katie and I were listening to it in the car, and we just looked at each other and just started laughing because we couldn't believe what we were hearing!

I think for the most part, there were a lot of good, hopeful, and inspiring things said throughout the inauguration. Let's hope for the best! :)