From WND:
“Harbinger” Author to Open National Day of Prayer
Rabbi Jonathan Cahn, author of runaway bestseller “The Harbinger,” has been invited to join the speakers for the 63rd annual National Day of Prayer on a date he tells WND holds a special significance in both his book and American history.
…”April 30 is the date given in ‘The Harbinger,'” Cahn told WND. “April 30, 1789, is the day that America came into existence as a fully formed nation with president and Congress, and on that day George Washington and America’s first government prayed and dedicated America to God at the very corner of what today we call Ground Zero.
“Now on the anniversary of that first prayer gathering, with America in grave moral and spiritual apostasy, the nation gathers again for prayer,” Cahn said.
Get “The Harbinger” and movie companion “The Isaiah 9:10 Judgment.”
According to the website of the National Day of Prayer Task Force:
The National Observance in Washington D.C. will be broadcast LIVE on GOD TV (DirecTV channel 365) and their networks on Thursday, May 1… Speakers include Anne Graham Lotz (daughter of Rev. Billy Graham), Dr. James and Shirley Dobson, Congressman Robert Aderholt, Mrs. Vonette Bright, The Honorable Bob McEwen, Congressman Mike McIntyre, Don Moen, Rabbi Jonathan Cahn, Chaplain Father Patrick Conroy, Dr. Dick Eastman, Mr. David Butts, Mr. John Bornschein, and many more.
I suspect Cahn’s “30 April” rather than “1 May” is a bit of poetic licence rather than an error.
WND tries to infer that this event is the official embodiment of the National Day of Prayer; the presence of the House of Representatives Chaplain Patrick Conroy and of Billy Graham’s daughter perhaps adds to this impression. However, although the National Day of Prayer is indeed designated by the United States Congress, this does not mean that the “Task Force” and its particular “National Observance” event have any kind of “official” status; indeed, in 2009 the Task Force issued a statement complaining that the Obama administration had not responded to a request “to send a representative on behalf of the Executive Branch”.
I’ve written about Cahn a number of times: for some years he has used his Jewish heritage to claim special insight into esoteric “Hebrew Mysteries” in the Bible and such, but he hit the big-time with the Harbinger. The book interprets 9/11 through the lens of how the Hebrew Bible treats ancient Israelite history; in particular, Cahn points to two American politicians (Jonathan Edwards in 2001 and Tom Daschle three years later) who quoted a Bible verse out of context following the attack as “inviting judgment” on the USA.
By the “corner of what today we call Ground Zero”, Cahn means St Paul’s Chapel, which was damaged by debris from the Twin Towers. George Washington indeed attended an Episcopal prayer service at this location following his first inauguration; his most recent serious biographer, Ron Chernow, has the context (Washington: A Life, page 569):
Setting the pattern for future inaugural speeches, Washington did not delve into minute policy matters… National policy needed to be rooted in private morality, which relied on the “eternal rules of order and right” ordained by heaven itself. On the other hand, Washington refrained from endorsing any particular form of religion.
…After this speech, Washington led a broad procession of delegates up Broadway… to an Episcopal prayer service at St. Paul’s Chapel, where he was given his own canopied pew.
But there’s no reference here to America being “dedicated to God”; Cahn is probably thinking of a spurious “Washington Prayer”, which Franklin Steiner showed in 1936 had been concocted later from a 1783 letter to state governors. In Cahn’s worldview, the prayer would not just be an example of Washington’s piety: such a “dedication” would amount to a near-magical invocation, unleashing God as a mechanistic spiritual force in American history.
Cahn previously took part in a similar “Presidential Inaugural Prayer Breakfast” in January 2013; WND‘s editor, the birther Jospeh Farah, was also due to attend, but dropped out amid some confusion (he eventually sent a message that was read out). The event was apparently followed by some sort of copyright dispute between Cahn and the event organisers.
Filed under: Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
