Articles for tag: God Bless America

July 5, 2016

Prayer for America

By Mark A. Taylor Last Sunday, the day before the Fourth of July, I had the chance to lead worship in my home congregation. While I don”t believe Sunday-morning worship is the place for patriotic rallies (I”ve written about this before), I do believe we should be praying for our country as Christians gathered. So I wrote the following prayer as a responsive reading for the service I led. Maybe it will encourage some readers today. And some might even personalize it to use in their own congregations. Leader: Dear God, as we think about the freedoms, privilege, and possibilities

June 28, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Where Patriotism Belongs

By Mark A. Taylor The below piece, first posted here five years ago, still resonates with me as we approach the Sunday before the Fourth of July. As one commenter said when it first appeared, “Our patriotism is for our freedom and way of life in a free country; our worship is reserved only for our Creator God.” More than a decade ago, my congregation hosted a patriotic pageant each year called “Sea to Shining Sea.” We had a huge adult choir, a children”s choir, a live orchestra, actors, and dancers. We welcomed color guards from all the armed services.

July 3, 2011

Christian Standard

Christian Living

“˜And God Bless America”

By Doug Priest Perhaps I am not the only one who has a visceral reaction when politicians (and I do not mean only the presidents) end their speeches with the phrase, “And God bless America.” I cringe every time I hear that, and it is not just because it seems highly hypocritical when so many of the politicians who use the phrase are later caught up in ethical scandals or involved in illicit liaisons. Nor is it because the slogan is pandering, politically tacked on the end of a message to score points with others, but used by many who

July 2, 2011

Christian Standard

Christian Living

“˜God Bless America”

By Mark A. Taylor More than a decade ago, my congregation hosted a patriotic pageant each year called “Sea to Shining Sea.” We had a huge adult choir, a children”s choir, a live orchestra, actors, and dancers. We welcomed color guards from all the armed services. We sang every patriotic song you know, including one that invited veterans from every branch of the service to stand and receive the cheers of the crowd. Fireworks accompanied the songs, and after the last note, everyone sat with necks craned to the sky and enjoyed 20 minutes of the rockets” red glare. Our

July 4, 2010

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

God Bless America?

By Marshall Leggett AmericaÂ has a rich heritage of faith, from its very beginning.Â Columbus, whose name means Christ bearer, saw his exploration of theÂ New WorldÂ as being guided by the providential hand of God. “Our Lord unlocked within me the determination to execute the idea,”Â ColumbusÂ wrote. “Who doubts that His was the illumination of the Holy Spirit? Our Lord wished to perform the clearest work of providence in this matter.”1 Then came the Pilgrims. Their Mayflower Compact expressed the intention of these Christians “to live under the rule of law based on the consent of the people.”2Â Their desire, as explained here, was to