Warren’s ‘inclusive’ prayer ignites reactions
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ABC reports (with video) Rick Warren, the evangelical pastor who faced criticism for his anti-gay views in the weeks leading up to the inauguration, today delivered an inclusive but deeply religious invocation that celebrated the first African-American president.
WND reports Pastor Rick Warren’s invocation at President Obama’s inauguration today has ignited a flurry of critiques for using words from the Jewish, Christian and Muslim holy texts as well as including the name of Jesus – in several languages.
Leading up to the prayer, bloggers and commentators debated whether Warren – an evangelical pastor blasted by the homosexual community for his opposition to same-sex marriage – would draft a prayer that was inclusive of the many Americans of differing religions, moralities and politics or whether it would be solely reflective of evangelical Christian theology.
Following the prayer, some criticized him for being too inclusive.
The LA Tiimes reports In his inaugural invocation Tuesday, evangelical Pastor Rick Warren delivered a message of unity that pleased some of his most vocal critics in the gay and lesbian community.
Yet even as the founder of Orange County’s Saddleback Church appeared to mollify those who have fought with him over gay marriage, he raised other eyebrows by invoking Jesus’ name and concluding with the Lord’s Prayer — both distinctly Christian practices on a day that has typically been characterized by more general expressions of “civil religion.”
Here is the transcript. Here is a link to religious material in Obama’s speech.