Praying for SCOTUS

As the Supreme Court prepares to hear two cases concerning marriage equality this coming Monday and Tuesday, the Family Research Council reminds us to be in prayer for the justices and those arguing the case on both sides. 

From their March 20 "Prayer Targets" page:

May God guide us in praying for each member of the Supreme Court: for Samuel Alito, Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, Anthony Kennedy, Chief Justice John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Sonia Sotomayor, and Clarence Thomas. May each Justice be governed by the fear of God and fidelity to the moral law and Constitution. 

Amen.

May the attorneys defending traditional marriage be given anointing, clarity, effectiveness, conviction and persuasiveness in presenting their arguments. May traditional marriage prevail in the minds of a strong majority of the justices, and may traditional marriage be reaffirmed as the law of the land.

Well, that's not exactly my prayer.

May those arguing on behalf of same-sex "marriage" present their arguments in an inept, confusing and unconvincing way. May they fail to gain traction in the minds of the Justices. May the right of Californians to amend their state constitution to protect marriage be confirmed by the Court, and may the Defense of Marriage Act be ruled constitutional.

Whoa!! I wonder what God makes of that prayer?!

But I do appreciate this ... that the FRC reminds us to approach next week in an attitude of prayer. (Although I am not sure FRC totally models what I would call an attitude of prayer... more just an attitude.) 

May we pray for SCOTUS and the advocates arguing before them but let our prayers be for clear and wise minds and compassionate hearts as everyone makes their case and the justices deliberate about their decision.

And let us pray also for people like Edie Windsor.  Edie, 83-years-old, lived with her spouse Thea Spyer for more than 42 years, including 20 months of marriage after getting legally wed in Canada.  When Thea died, Edie got a $363,000 federal estate tax bill that she would not have gotten had she been married to a man, not because they had a lot of money but because their Greenwich Village apartment had greatly appreciated in value.

Let us also pray for our married Foundry friends who are either living out of the country or else are actually living in two separate countries because U.S. immigration laws will not recognize their marriages even though they are legally married.

Let us pray for all those who have lived committed and loving lives together but whose commitment and love we have not honored.

James 5:16b says: "The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective." The Greek word divkaioß -- translated here "righteous"-- means "just." 

The prayer of those who value justice is powerful and effective.

So let us pray for the justices and for the advocates ... and let us pray for justice. 

We will be having a special time of prayer at Foundry this Sunday.