National Day of Prayer

The Pentagon recently withdrew their invitation to Franklin Graham to speak at its National Day of Prayer services on May 6. This was in response to complaints from advocacy groups that Graham had made biased shortly after 9/11, calling Islam “evil”. Representatives from the Pentagon said Graham’s presence would be “inappropriate for an inclusive, multi-faith observance.”
This is hypocritical because the National Day of Prayer is not an inclusive tradition. It was established in 1952, strongly lobbied for by Billy Graham, Franklin Graham’s father, and ever since it has been controversial due to the Judeo-Christian language associated with the day, which excludes atheists, agnostics, and polytheists. Yet the government tends to ignore this fact, and this year Obama plans to ignore the decision by Judge Barbara Crabb that it is unconstitutional on the grounds that violates the separation of Church and State. Graham responded to the Pentagon’s decision by saying that he loves the Islamic people, but wants them to find Christ. To me, it seems obvious that every denominational leader speaking at the service believes that the other religions present have gotten it wrong, which is why excluding Graham for using negative language about Muslims (which the American President was also doing at that point in time) seems hypocritical. I think the government and pentagon should stop focusing on how they will celebrate the National Day of Prayer, and abolish it instead.