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U.S.
Senator Member of the Agriculture, Energy and Veterans Affairs
Committees |
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For Immediate
Release February 2, 2006 |
CONTACT: Cody Wertz – Comm. Director 303-455-7600 Andrew Nannis – Press Secretary 202-224-5852 |
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Washington, DC – Today, Senator Ken Salazar and Senator David Vitter (R-LA) gave the welcoming addresses to the National Prayer Breakfast. The keynote address was delivered by President Bush. Senator Salazar’s address as prepared for delivery follows: “At the United States Senate Prayer Breakfast, we pray together, Democrats and Republicans alike, and put aside what are sometimes very divisive and bitter political and policy differences to focus on our common humanity and faith in God. “Like many of my Republican and Democratic colleagues in the U.S. Senate, and those of you in the distinguished audience today, I grew up in a family and a community with a deep and abiding faith, and with the desire to translate our values into the service of our neighbors, and into the betterment of our nation and our world. “My own faith begins with my family. My family founded one of the first settlements in America and named the city ‘Santa Fe,’ or ‘Holy Faith.’ Over the more than four centuries since that time, my family has sacrificed and endured through war, death, poverty, and discrimination. During those four centuries, we have survived because of our faith that all of God’s children have within their minds and hearts the ability to create a more perfect and better world. “A central tenet of our ability to create a more perfect world is in our shared faith that ‘God is love.’ And in order to be able to love God, we must first love one another. “In the first Encyclical Letter from Pope Benedict XVI, he quotes from chapter 4 of the Book of John: ‘If anyone says, ‘I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.’ “Pope Benedict XVI continued: ‘The unbreakable bond between love of God and love of neighbor is emphasized. One is so closely connected to the other that to say that we love God becomes a lie if we are closed to our neighbor or hate him altogether.’ “Let us pledge today to redouble our efforts to mend the rifts that too often exist between religious traditions, nations, and political parties. Let us remember that love of neighbor and love of God are linked by an unbreakable bond, and that our lives and our work should be motivated by love and compassion for our fellow man. “In closing, I’d like to share with you a prayer by Cesar Chavez, the founder of the United Farm Workers:
“Show me the suffering of the most miserable; So I will know my people’s plight. Free me to pray for others; For you are present in every person. Help me take responsibility for my own life; So that I can be free at last. Grant me the courage to serve others; For in service there is true life. Give me honesty and patience; So that the Spirit will be alive among us. Let the Spirit flourish and grow; So that we will never tire of the struggle. Let us remember those who have died for justice; For they have given us life. Help us love even those who hate us; So we can change the world. Amen.” ###
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