A Rant connected to Religion

Something has been bothering me since the opening of the Republican National Convention this year in Cleveland.  Prayers.

I'm not against  praying.  If that is what you want to do.. do it.  But, if you do it in public, at least in the United States, remember that there are people who may not have the same beliefs as you have.

When I was President of the local AARP Chapter, we had meetings where 200 or more people would attend.  Where I live, I believe, most of our members were Christians.  However, some of our members were not.

When we opened the meeting, according to custom, a preacher would give a short prayer.  Since AARP is not a religious organization, such prayers should have been non-denominational.  The man who gave a prayer at our meetings was beloved and respected by our members and nobody would ever think to say anything that would have made him uncomfortable.  So, even though he would name Jesus in his prayers, nobody would say anything.  Even our Jewish, Indian, and Atheist members never complained, until one month.

An Indian woman complained, in a  nice way, that she had nothing against prayers, except that in a non-denominational setting, they should be generic.  I agreed with her and regretted that I had never mentioned the type of prayer needed to our preacher friend.  So, I discussed it with him (in a nice way).. and he agreed to comply.  He did so, for a few months.. until a different President took over.

In Toastmasters, we are advised to give all-inclusive prayers, when asked to do invocations and such. One of our members wrote a beautiful prayer that nobody could ever possibly complain about.  She has been using it at functions for years with no problems.

So.. why couldn't the Republicans talk to their preachers and explain to them that their prayers would be heard and seen throughout the Nation, and the World, and that "exclusionary" prayers would be seen by some as more evidence of the American Republican Party being just for "certain" persons?

Cases in point:

At the opening of the Convention, a preacher mentioned Jesus. 

After the crowning of Donald Trump, a preacher yelled out that God was on the side of the Republican Party... and also mentioned Jesus.  Surprising to me  was the fact that the person asking for "AMENs" was an African American preacher from South Carolina.  In an NPR interview later, this preacher was unapologetic, just as the Trump faction is unapologetic about the apparent plagiarism by Mrs. Trump. 

Enough!

PS 

1.  During the American Civil War, both Yankees and Rebels prayed that God would be on their side, and help them slaughter their neighbors.

2.  During World War II, the German soldiers prayed to God to help them prevail... so did our American soldiers.

3.  Some years ago, a violent hurricane was threatening an East Coast city.  The people got together and prayed to God to spare their town.  God must have heard them.... but not the people who also prayed in the next town, because the hurricane veered off course and destroyed the other town instead.

Hey, while I am on a rant... let me mention something else  that bothers me.  At a relative's home, I saw a "yellow pages" book.  Not your everyday telephone company book, but an exclusive book, listing only those local businesses "with Christian ownership."  Unbelievable.  However, some churches make arrangements for their members to buy such "anti-Semitic?" books.  I've heard that it is a good "money maker"... of course, because it panders to stereotypical bigotry.  (In my humble opinion.)
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