Dalai Lama Opens Senate Session With Prayer

[hrmjustin]

AP | by DONNA CASSATA

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Dalai Lama has opened the Senate with prayer.

With nearly a dozen senators listening raptly, the Dalai Lama said that if you speak or act with a pure mind, happiness will follow.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid thanked the Dalai Lama for his prayers and words of encouragement.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/06/dalai-lama-senate_n_4911531.html?utm_hp_ref=religion&ir=Religion

[cbayer]

1. Nearly a dozen senators? That's all that showed up?

[hrmjustin]

2. Sad that they couldn't bother to be there.

[cbayer]

3. I know. I think I would go out of my way if I had the opportunity to see him.

[hrmjustin]

4. I would too.

[okasha]

5. Quite apart from the slight to the Dalai Lama,

why the hell can't our duly elected slackers work a 40 hour week just like most of the rest of us?

[Goblinmonger]

6. So the prayer should be mandatory?

Madison might have had some things to say about that.

[hrmjustin]

7. That was not the point. The point is that they could have shown up out of respect.

If the pope was there he would have gotten a larger turnout.

[Leontius]

8. They didn't show up for fear of annoying China.

Cowards one and all if that was the reason.

[hrmjustin]

10. Well that is cowardly.

[Goblinmonger]

12. But it was a prayer

And the post I replied to complained that there weren't more people there for the prayer. If this were a speech by the same guy and had the same turnout, then it's a different argument.

[hrmjustin]

13. No one would have forced them to pray.

[Goblinmonger]

14. But they should be forced to be there?

I know you didn't say they should be forced but seems like the implicit concept given the reaction to them not being there. It was a prayer. Yeah, sure, is the Dalai Lama. But he's just saying the opening prayer. Big whoop.

[hrmjustin]

15. Well most people would say meeting the Dalai Lama is a big thing.

[okasha]

9. The Dalai Lama is a moral force

for peace in a very wounded world. I would expect the Senators to show support for peacemaking, regardless of whether or not they attended a prayer.

[Goblinmonger]

11. But it was a prayer

So it's hard to say they shoulda/coulda for something else.

[okasha]

16. The Senate routinely opens with a prayer.

With or without which, it is their job to be there.

[Goblinmonger]

18. I understand that

Where does it say they need to be there for the opening prayer?

[LostOne4Ever]

17. Don't care if its the Dalai Lama

The pope, an Ayatollah, or the top strainer head for the church of the flying spaghetti monster. There should be no organized prayer to open the senate.

If they want to prayer before each session they need to find a place beforehand and on their own time and do it. Not the peoples time.

And before anyone objects noting that it is a tradition going back to our founders, so was a lot of other dumb and hypocritical things. Doesn't make it right.