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Dobson: God Prevailed Over "Forces of Hell" To Save National Day of Prayer

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on April 25, 2011 - 12:22pm

Today, James Dobson dedicated his radio program to discussing the upcoming National Day of Prayer.  His guests included his wife Shirley, who is Chair of the National Day of Prayer Task Force, and John Bornschein, who is the organization's Executive Director.

During the program, Dobson and Bornschein remarked on last week's ruling by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals that the National Day of Prayer is constitutional as proof God answered their prayers when the Day of Prayer came under attack from "the forces of Hell": 

Dobson: We've already had an incredible answered prayer in the National Day of Prayer.

Bornschein: It is something we celebrate. We are so blessed by God's divine hand going over the protection of prayer in America just in the past few months. And on Thursday we celebrated with breaking news a three-to-zero victory in the Seventh Circuit Court to uphold that the National Day of Prayer is constitutional. Actually, just simply echoing the voice of the American public who are saying "yes, we want the National Day of Prayer," according to the Gallup poll and then the judges echoed that and said "yes, the National Day of Prayer is constitutional and it will continue."

And this is right on the heels of a state victory allowing the Governors to continue to write proclamations, as well as a victory in a military installation allowing them to have prayer. And now we have the federal court saying "yes, the nation can recognize a national day of prayer" and the president can sign that proclamation on the first Thursday of every May declaring a National Day of Prayer, that thirty-three of forty-four US presidents have already done throughout our history.

Dobson: One year ago on the National Day of Prayer, there was apprehension over the National Day of Prayer because this ruling had just been handed down. And then the Pentagon would not allow Franklin Graham to come ... it just looked like the forces of Hell were arrayed against this national prayer movement and yet the Lord has answered prayer and brought us through it.

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The Creeping Dominionism Of the Religious Right

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on May 5, 2010 - 1:38pm

I have to admit that I am not sure if I can seeing the rise of dominion theology more and more among the Religious Right because it is a) becoming more prevalent or b) it has always been there but I am now aware of it and therefore noticing it more.

As we noted recently, Janet Porter's entire May Day 2010 prayer rally was built around "7 Mountains" theology; the idea that Christians are to take dominion over, literally, seven specific facets of modern life in order to wrest control away from Satan and his demonic spirits so that Christians can put them to use in bringing about God’s kingdom on Earth: (1) Business; (2) Government; (3) Media; (4) Arts and Entertainment; (5) Education; (6) Family; and (7) Religion.

Porter's rally featured dozens of Religious Right leaders, all repenting and praying for one of these specific mountains.  Some of them, like Cindy Jacobs, clearly subscribe to 7 Mountains theology, but others - like Tony Perkins, Mat Staver, Rick Scarborough, Rob Schenck, and Bryan Fischer - may or may not, but that didn't stop them from participating in this event, though it did lead VCY America to drop Porter's radio program because of her increasing involvement with this sort of dominionist theology.

Today, while watching the Family Research Council's pre-National Day of Prayer webcast, I noticed that the last half-hour or so was given over to attendees gathering in small groups and praying specifically for each one of these same 7 Mountains in five minute intervals. 

In fact, the official mission from the National Day of Prayer Task Force appears to be 7 Mountains-based (with the one exception being that the Task Force appears to consolidate arts and entertainment under the "media" title and adding the military to fill that open spot): 

The National Day of Prayer Task Force’s mission is to communicate with every individual the need for personal repentance and prayer, mobilizing the Christian community to intercede for America and its leadership in the seven centers of power: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family.

The Task Force is run by James Dobson's wife Shirley and includes not only 7 Mountains co-founder Bill Bright's wife Vonette on its leadership committee but also dominionist/New Apostolic Reformation mastermind Peter Wagner on its "board of reference," along with several members of Congress: Representative Michele Bachmann, Representative Lincoln Davis, Representative Bob Goodlatte, Representative Mike McIntyre, Representative Mike Pence, Representative Joseph Pitts, and Representative Chris Smith.

Now, in a semi-related development, I noticed that last week Pat Robertson's CBN hosted its annual "Week of Prayer" which featured two dominionist preachers and Lou Engle associates: Dutch Sheets and Che Ahn.

Sheets was co-organizing the now-canceled Wilderness Outcry event with Engle and wrote the foreward to Engle's "The Call of the Elijah Revolution," while Ahn is a co-founder to Engle's TheCall and co-wrote "The Call Revolution" with Engle. In that book, Ahn reports that he first met Engle back in the 1980s when Engle was a seminary drop out who was mowing lawns for a living until, believing him to be a prophet, Ahn gave him a job in his church where all he had to do was pray and fast.

Like I said, I am not sure if this dominionist/7 Mountains theology is becoming more widespread among the establishment Religious Right or if it has always been there and I am just starting to notice it more.

But if places like VCY America are going to be dropping associations because of this creeping dominionism, they might soon find themselves parting ways with a significant number of groups within the so-called mainstream of the Religious Right.

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The Secular Purpose of Prayer?

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on April 19, 2010 - 3:28pm

I realize that I may not be as deeply schooled in theology as many Religious Right leaders - or even Fox News anchors - but when exactly did prayer become a secular activity?

Occasionally live television provides a vivid display of the mental gymnastics and cognitive dissonance deployed to advance an argument. Take Fox News' Megyn Kelly, who recently asked what was so "promotional about religion" in setting aside a day to celebrate "the role that God has played in the formation of this country and its laws."

Discussing a court ruling that declared national prayer day unconstitutional, Kelly hosted Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. Lynn set forth an argument against the appropriateness of the government setting aside a day to commemorate prayer:

Prayer is religious. It's nothing but that. There is no secular purpose here. This isn't like declaring Christmas a holiday, which the federal government does, because that's got not just religious rituals, but now glommed onto it all secular rituals. National Day of Prayer is only about religion. There is nothing secular about it.

At this point, Kelly jumped in to display an astounding failure to grasp the concept:

Why can't it be a day where people acknowledge not just prayer, but they are encouraged to meditate as well, which is not necessarily prayer? And why can't it be a day where we take a moment and we stop and we acknowledge the role that God has played in the formation of this country and its laws. What's so promotional about religion there?

And it is not just Fox News, as Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council argued made a similar argument to Anderson Cooper, claiming that there is no coercion involved and therefore the National Day of Prayer is constitutional since it has a "secular purpose because it unites the nation, especially in times of trouble, in times of economic downturn, in times of war": 

Yes, the goal of the National Day of Prayer is to unite the nation in prayer ... and, according to the right-wing National Day of Prayer Task Force, unite the nation in Christian prayer:

The National Day of Prayer Task Force’s mission is to communicate with every individual the need for personal repentance and prayer, mobilizing the Christian community to intercede for America and its leadership in the seven centers of power: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family.

In fact, the National Day of Prayer Task Force even explicitly bans non-Christian groups from NPDTF events:

The National Day of Prayer Task Force was a creation of the National Prayer Committee for the expressed purpose of organizing and promoting prayer observances conforming to a Judeo-Christian system of values. People with other theological and philosophical views are, of course, free to organize and participate in activities that are consistent with their own beliefs. This diversity is what Congress intended when it designated the Day of Prayer, not that every faith and creed would be homogenized, but that all who sought to pray for this nation would be encouraged to do so in any way deemed appropriate. It is that broad invitation to the American people that led, in our case, to the creation of the Task Force and the Judeo-Christian principles on which it is based.

Explain again how this is part of a "secular purpose."

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ADF Likens Day of Prayer Lawsuit To Hostage-Taking Gunman

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on February 23, 2010 - 5:08pm

Back in 2008, the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed suit against the National Day of Prayer and named White House Press Secretary Dana Perino, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, and National Day of Prayer Task Force Chairwoman Shirley Dobson in the lawsuit.

The case is on-going, and Dobson is being represented by the Alliance Defense Fund (which just so happens to have been founded by Shirley's husband, James Dobson, and others).  As such, the case was the cover story of the ADF's latest issue of its publication "Truth and Triumph" ... and I have to say that ADF's attempt to liken the lawsuit to a hostage-taking episode that unfolded at Focus on the Family headquarters more than a decade ago seems a bit over-the-top:

The receptionist for Focus on the Family had just come back from lunch when she heard the disturbance at the glass doors in front of her. She looked up into the very intense face of a man demanding to talk immediately with Dr. James Dobson, head of the ministry.

Graciously, the receptionist began explaining that Dr. Dobson was with his wife, Shirley, in Washington, D.C., that afternoon for National Day of Prayer observances …but she quickly became distracted.

The man, she realized, was holding a gun. And tied around his waist were what appeared to be some kind of explosives.

The Dobsons had just returned to their hotel room when the phone rang with word that the receptionist and three others were being held hostage at the ministry in Colorado Springs. The couple immediately paused to pray for the Focus staff and the gunman, and began asking others around them to pray, too.

Soon, word came that the gunman had surrendered, without hurting anyone – though he did fire his weapon, tearing a hole high on the wall behind the receptionist’s desk.

When Mrs. Dobson enters the front doors at Focus, she walks right by that gash. It remains unrepaired – a reminder of God’s powerful intervention one long, frightening afternoon nearly 14 years ago.

These days, though, it’s also a quiet reminder of something else. For these days, it is the National Day of Prayer itself that’s endangered. And it’s Shirley Dobson who is under the gun.

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Highlights From the Religious Right's Anti-Islam Counter Offensive

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on September 25, 2009 - 10:54am

Last night we posted audio of Rifqa Bary's surprise appearance on the National Day of Prayer Task Force's effort to mobilize its Christian warriors to counter the "dark spiritual content" of the scheduled Muslim prayer rally in Washington, DC, which, as we've seen over the last several days, and continue to see, seems to be causing the Religious Right to completely freak out:

Robert Knight is a senior fellow at the American Civil Rights Union and a senior writer for Coral Ridge Ministries. He says having 50,000 Muslims on Capitol Hill paints a very potent picture for Muslims around the world.

"It's adding up to a picture that the United States may not want to paint because there are a lot of Muslims who will be inspired, perhaps, to get more militant if they think the United States is falling into Muslim hands, basically," he points out.

According to Knight, many Muslims believe they have a sympathetic ear in President Barack Obama. "Obama held no National Day of Prayer events at the White House this year, but gave a very positive eloquent speech about Ramadan," he recalls. "And he also has said some very interesting things overseas about the emergence of Islam."

Organizers say it was President Obama's inauguration speech in January and his speech broadcast from Egypt in June that inspired them to hold Friday's event, scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

At least one pro-family organization has expressed deep concern about the individuals who have organized the gathering and who are scheduled to speak. In an Action Alert to its constituents, the American Family Association has described those individuals as "men who harbor both anti-Semitic and fundamentally anti-American views." And like Knight, AFA notes President Obama's refusal to participate in the National Day of Prayer in May -- in contrast to his hosting of a White House dinner celebrating what Obama called "the Holy Month of Ramadan."

Meanwhile, Christians alarmed at today's scheduled gathering of tens of thousands of Muslims outside the U.S. Capitol have prayed together in a national conference call. Shirley Dobson, who heads the National Day of Prayer Task Force, said she and other Christians "are so troubled at what we see going on in our nation -- we're watching the foundations crumble."

Associated Press says Christian leaders in last night's conference call were unconvinced the gathering will be a time for Muslims to pray together, read the Quran, and celebrate America's religious freedom -- as its organizers insist. Family Research Council president Tony Perkins wondered if the Muslims would be "praying for the well-being of our nation."

Perkins called the Muslim gathering "a wake-up call for the church" and a warning that if Christians do not "fill the void that's in this nation with the truth, it will be filled with something else."

We've put together this clip featuring some of the highlights from the call itself, featuring Dobson saying the effort was designed to "put a shield of prayer around the United States of American and our world, while just praying for God's intervention." She was followed by Perkins, who insisted that it was not a question of whether Muslims had a right to gather to pray but rather "the focus of their prayers, are they praying for the well-being of our nation," saying that the Islamic community has been silent when acts of terrorism have been committed against America and has been equally silent on the "threats" facing Rifqa Bary and, as such, "we have reason to be suspicious about the motives this community has for the well-being of this country. Perkins then introduced his "good friend" Lou Engle, who proceeded to warn that Americans did not "understand the spiritual implications of what is taking place" with this Muslim rally, saying they were "taking the spiritual power of 40 days Ramadan and then channeling it like an arrow right into the White House."  Eventually, others began to pray as well, asking God for a "great turning in education, a great turning in the political arena, [and to] turn the media in America over to your son" at which point Engle took over again asking God to help them win "the challenge in the spirit realm" and defeat "every demonic ideology [and] every spirit of darkness":

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When Two Become One: Rifqa Bary And The Religious Right's Battle Against Islam

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on September 24, 2009 - 8:57pm

For the last few days, I've been covering the right-wing effort to mobilize it own Christian forces to counter the "dark spiritual content" of the upcoming Muslim prayer rally.  Tonight, activists gathered for a conference call/prayer rally hosted by the National Day of Prayer Task Force, headed by Shirely Dobson, wife of Focus on the Family's James Dobson, Lou Engle of The Call, and featuring other activists like Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council and Cindy Jacobs.

Tonight, this effort revealed itself to be part of the much larger Religious Right battle against Islam in America when the Religious Right's latest cause célèbre, Rifqa Bary, joined the conference call.

At the beginning of the clip, Lou Engle is told by one of the other participants that "their little sister" is on the line, at which point Engle introduces Rifqa Bary to the conference call participants and asks her to share her story.  Bary, sounding like a somewhat nervous but otherwise perfectly average teenager, recounts her conversion to Christianity and her decision to flee from the home of her Muslim parents in Ohio.  Following that, Engle declared Bary to be "an Esther for such a time as this" and asks her to lead the call in prayer, which she agrees to do, at which point she becomes seemingly hysterical and rather incoherent while sobbing and praying, making it nearly impossible to understand what she is saying outside of her repeated cries to Jesus.

And then, just like that, she stops, seemingly catching the other participants off guard until Engle then chimes in with his own fervent prayers to God to "use Rifqa to be an Esther." Soon Engle is joined by various others, all of whom pray for this modern day Esther who will lead Muslims out of Islam and into Christianity while asking God to spread Rifqa's "so that the testimony of Jesus will go out to CNN, will go out to talk shows and use this little story so that all across America the Gospel will be preached" and to "expose the hidden darkness that is rolling into the nation through these ideologies."

Eventually, Engle unmutes the conference call's participants and asks them all to pray for Rifqa, at which point the call the descends into little more than chaos and static:

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NDPTF Tries to Tone Down Its Rhetoric

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on September 24, 2009 - 12:47pm

Last night I highlighted the upcoming Lou Engle-Tony Perkins-David Barton-backed National Day of Prayer Task Force conference call/prayer rally designed to counter the "dark spiritual content" of the upcoming Muslim prayer rally.  

But now it looks as the organizers have realized that their call to arms against the "rising tide of Islamic boldness" might have been a bit over the top, because they have removed the original press release and replaced it with this less confrontational version:

The National Day of Prayer Task Force is committed to prayer for the nation 365 days a year. We are thankful that we live in a country founded on Judeo-Christian principles, and consequently there is freedom for all to gather, pray and worship.

It is important that we understand the signs of the time and what we must do. The need is great for Christians to join together in Solemn Assembly seeking transformation in our communities today.

Therefore, we are calling Christians to join Lou Engle, Shirley Dobson, Tony Perkins, David Barton, and many other major leaders in America to a national conference call to pray for America. Please join us tonight, Thursday, September 24th from 7:30PM to 9:00PM Eastern Time for possibly one of the greatest moments in the prayer movement.

Compare that with what they originally posted last night:

It is critical that the church in America understands the times and what needs to be done now. The natural things speak of the invisible. Natural happenings on the earth are revealing something that is going on in the spiritual realm. There is a great spiritual conflict with a rising tide of Islamic boldness being manifested.

Our President has recently honored the Muslim holy days of prayer and fasting called Ramadan. Interestingly at the same time a major Christian leader of the Emergent Church called for forty days of fasting and prayer in the same Ramadan period with the goal that the church will better understand our Muslim friends. We advocate for understanding, but we must have spiritual discernment as to the spiritual dark powers that are being invoked into our nation.

At the same time, on the 25th of September, Muslims are calling for a Muslim Day of Prayer in Washington DC (http://www.islamoncapitolhill.com/). They are calling for 50,000 Muslims to gather and pray on the DC Mall. This is the exact word of one of the Sheikhs who is leading this historic gathering, "Muslims should march on the White House. We are going to the White House so that Islam will be victorious, Allah willing, and the White House will become into a Muslim house." These are not empty words. They speak of a dark spiritual intent and a coming day of great trouble to America.

Therefore we are calling Christians all over America to join Lou Engle, Shirley Dobson, Tony Perkins, David Barton, and many other major leaders in America to a national conference call to pray for America. Please join us on Thursday, September 24th from 7:30PM to 9:00PM Eastern Time for possibly one of the greatest moments in American history.

While the NDPTF may be trying to tone down its rhetoric, the same cannot be said for Engle, who has issued his own "urgent nationwide call to prayer" in order to stand "against [the] principalities, powers, and forces of darkness" and pray that God will "use what the enemy meant for evil to bring about a great day of salvation for Muslims in America":

Now these events are enough to awaken us to this significant throbbing moment, but when they all converge it becomes a massive spiritual alarm that must be responded to by the praying Church. This convergence, I believe, is urgently summoning us in the midst of the rising tide of Islamic influence in America to recognize that our God is above every god and that if we return to Him with all of our hearts and call upon Him with fasting and prayer then God could use what the enemy meant for evil to bring about a great day of salvation for Muslims in America.

First of all, we cannot be passive as a Church to let these kinds of developments go on without being challenged in the spirit. Our fight is not against Muslims, it is against principalities, powers, and forces of darkness. We are calling the Church of America at the end of Ramadan, from September 21st through 25th, to five days of concerted prayer. On Friday, September 25th, the Muslim Day of Prayer, we are calling the Church of America to fast and pray that Muslims would be moved by the Holy Spirit, convicted by the testimony of Christ, and even be visited by Jesus in dreams. We must pray that God would restrain the spiritual powers behind Islam and grant us the great awakening that we desperately need for America.

Therefore we are calling Christians all over America to join Lou Engle, Mrs. Shirley Dobson, Tony Perkins, and many other major leaders in America to a national conference call to pray for America. Please join us on Thursday, September 24th from 7:30PM to 9:00PM Eastern for what we believe is a critical moment in American History.

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Religious Right Mobilizes to Counter Muslim Prayer Rally's "Dark Spiritual Intent"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on September 23, 2009 - 6:36pm

Earlier today I wrote about the fact that Lou Engle, David Barton, and the Family Research Council were raising warning flags about the Muslim prayer rally in Washington, DC on Friday and urging their own activists to hold their own prayer rallies in an effort to convent Muslims to Christianity and fight the elevation of Islam in America.

Now, these forces are teaming up with the National Day of Prayer Task Force to mobilize their own Christian forces for a rival prayer rally/conference call:

It is critical that the church in America understands the times and what needs to be done now. The natural things speak of the invisible. Natural happenings on the earth are revealing something that is going on in the spiritual realm. There is a great spiritual conflict with a rising tide of Islamic boldness being manifested.

Our President has recently honored the Muslim holy days of prayer and fasting called Ramadan. Interestingly at the same time a major Christian leader of the Emergent Church called for forty days of fasting and prayer in the same Ramadan period with the goal that the church will better understand our Muslim friends. We advocate for understanding, but we must have spiritual discernment as to the spiritual dark powers that are being invoked into our nation.

At the same time, on the 25th of September, Muslims are calling for a Muslim Day of Prayer in Washington DC (http://www.islamoncapitolhill.com/). They are calling for 50,000 Muslims to gather and pray on the DC Mall. This is the exact word of one of the Sheikhs who is leading this historic gathering, "Muslims should march on the White House. We are going to the White House so that Islam will be victorious, Allah willing, and the White House will become into a Muslim house." These are not empty words. They speak of a dark spiritual intent and a coming day of great trouble to America.

Therefore we are calling Christians all over America to join Lou Engle, Shirley Dobson, Tony Perkins, David Barton, and many other major leaders in America to a national conference call to pray for America. Please join us on Thursday, September 24th from 7:30PM to 9:00PM Eastern Time for possibly one of the greatest moments in American history.

Call: 712-338-8100
Alternate Dial in Numbers: 218-486-1400, 507-726-3200
Participant Passcode: 637# (NDP#)

Time Zones:
7:30 - 9 pm EASTERN
6:30 - 8 pm CENTRAL
5:30 - 7 pm MOUNTAIN
4:30 - 6 pm PACIFIC

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NDP Organizers Insisted Any White House Representative Be Pro-Life

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on May 8, 2009 - 10:30am

Yesterday I wrote a post about the Religious Right blasting the Obama administration for abandoning the "tradition" of hosting an official National Day of Prayer event at the White House, despite the fact that said "tradition" was started and observed by exactly one president: George W. Bush.

So instead of an event at the White House, an event was held at the Capitol and James Dobson, whose wife Shirley heads the pseudo-official National Day of Prayer Task Force, criticized for White House for not only refusing to host an event itself but for not even sending a representative to the event held on the Hill:

Evangelical author and radio host James Dobson said that he is "disappointed" that for the first time in nearly two decades there was no representative from the White House during the National Day of Prayer event.

"I have not asked to meet with the president and certainly he has not asked to meet with me, but I would just like this country to remember its foundation, to remember its heritage and honor it, especially on the day set aside by George Washington in the beginning for prayer in this country," he said. "And I would hope that that would have occurred."

...

"The national day of prayer is important for people all across the country and I think the president missed a wonderful opportunity," he said. "...Not only did he not have any ceremony himself, he did not send any representatives from the White House to this event."

Well, according to Dan Gilgoff, it turns out that that was because Day of Prayer organizers "stipulated that the White House representative had to be opposed to abortion rights:"

"The administration's representative had to be pro-life," says the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "Nobody else was allowed to go."

National Day of Prayer Task Force Marketing and Media Manager Becky Armstrong declined to comment on the report. An E-mail message sent yesterday to Focus on the Family's vice president for media relations, Gary Schneeberger, went unreturned. The prayer day task force operates out of Focus's Colorado Springs headquarters and is chaired by Shirley Dobson, the wife of the Focus founder.

...

[T]he well-placed source said the only Obama cabinet secretary to receive an invite to yesterday's event was Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, an anti-abortion rights Republican. LaHood did not attend the event.

Earlier this week, the Family Research Council weighed in to criticize Obama for not hosting a White House event in a piece entitled "The National Day of Prayer Is Everyone's Day." 

Everyone, that is, except those who don't share the Religious Right's views, apparently.

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Day of Prayer Task Force Wants Obama to Be Like Bush

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on May 5, 2009 - 11:05am

Last week we wrote about how, this year, it didn't look like the National Day of Prayer Task Force, headed by Shirley Dobson, was going to be involved in any formal White House observance of the event. 

And that is now officially the case ... mainly because there will be no White House event:

The National Day of Prayer White House event is history -- for now.

The White House has announced that President Obama will sign a proclamation on the National Day of Prayer, to be held on Thursday, but will not hold any sort of event. This marks a return to the practice of presidents before George W. Bush, who hosted religious leaders for a ceremony in honor of the day.

As Brian Toon, vice chairman of the organization, recently explained to Religion News Service, prior to the last administration, his group had not been involved in any White House event, saying that "there was no East Room event until George W."

Of course, just because George Bush was the only president to hold annual Day of Prayer events in the White House doesn't mean the NDPTF won't take this as an opportunity to slam Obama for not having one, as Dan Gilgoff reports:

The White House notes that presidents previous to Bush, including Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, were not in the habit of holding White House events for the National Day of Prayer ... Today, however, the task force E-mailed me to say it had uncovered evidence for two White House events in pre-Bush administrations: a 1989 breakfast event in the State Dining Room hosted by George H. W. Bush and a 1982 Rose Garden event with Reagan.

As Gilgoff notes, those two events (one held twenty years ago and the other held twenty-seven years ago) are "not exactly evidence that annual National Day of Prayer events were a well-established tradition in the pre-Bush years."

But still the NDPTF has issued a statement voicing its disappointment "in the lack of participation by the Obama Administration":

While there will be tens of thousands of prayer gatherings throughout the nation, on May 7th, the Obama Administration announced there will not be a White House Observance for the National Day of Prayer this year, contrary to the administrations of President George W. Bush, President George H. W. Bush, and President Ronald Reagan. A White House Observance was not held during the administration of President Bill Clinton.

It has been announced the White House will release some kind of proclamation recognizing the National Day of Prayer, but apparently it will not be made available until Thursday, May 7, which makes it too late for organizations to distribute.

...

Shirley Dobson said today, "We are disappointed in the lack of participation by the Obama Administration. At this time in our country's history, we would hope our President would recognize more fully the importance of prayer."

Of course, the Obama administration is still going to issue the proclamation, as it is required to do, it just won't be holding an event or inviting the Task Force to participate - which is pretty much what every other president, save George W. Bush, has done.

And for that, it is being accused of ignoring the "importance of prayer" - though, in reality, what the NDPTF is really angry about is the fact that the administration is ignoring the NDPTF.

UPDATE: See also CWA's Wendy Wright saying that while "President Obama may have problems believing in the Christian faith, he should at least honor the traditions and foundation of our country."

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