‘The Work of reconciliation’: Washington National Cathedral to hold election day prayer vigil
The Washington National Cathedral will hold a special prayer vigil on Election Day, with the hope that the service will help heal partisan divisions in the United States.
In an announcement on Thursday, cathedral officials said the church will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern time on Nov. 5 to hold a vigil for reflection and prayer on behalf of the nation.
As part of the Election Day schedule, the cathedral will hold a morning prayer service at 8 a.m., an interfaith prayer service at noon that will include Christian, Muslim and Jewish faith leaders, an evening prayer service at 5 p.m., and a final service of reflection and quiet at 8:45 p.m.
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In addition, on the day after the election, the National Cathedral will again be open all day for prayer, and will host a service focused on “unity and hope” at noon, followed by a choral evensong at 5 p.m.
“We have a breach in our public life, a brokenness that requires us to take on the work of reconciliation,” said the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, dean of the National Cathedral, as quoted in the announcement.
“Jesus’ command is very clear: 'love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.' That is a tall order, and it requires us to pray for God’s grace, to pray for healing.”
In addition to the November observances, as with past presidential election cycles, the National Cathedral will host a special interfaith service on the day after the inauguration, which the president-elect is expected to attend.
“We are in a unique moment in our country’s history, and it is time to approach this differently,” Hollerith said of the January service. “This will not be a service for a new administration.”
“Rather, whichever party wins, this will be a service for all Americans, for the well-being of our nation, for our democracy and the importance of the core values that must undergird our democracy.”
There has been a heightened concern over the state of civility and discourse in the United States in recent years, with many worried that the political climate is becoming more violent.
In July, for example, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks attempted to assassinate Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, wounding the former president and killing an event attendee and seriously wounding two other rallygoers before he was shot dead by a Secret Service counter-sniper.
A second attempt was made on Trump's life at his golf course in Florida last month.
Timothy Muehlhoff, a communications professor at Biola University, told The Christian Post in an earlier interview that he believes there is an “exhausted majority” that wants unity and civility in political disagreements.
“I think the majority of us are sick of this communications spiral, but we just don’t get the press,” Muehlhoff said, believing that this majority still lacked a “platform” to champion their cause.
“Unity is not nearly as attractive to news outlets as division.”
