This article was published in the Sweet Springs Herald on January 27, 2021.
Prayer in the Name of
Brahma
Jesus said, “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do,
that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name,
I will do it. John 14:13-14
Our Congressman, Emmanuel Cleaver
II, had the honor of opening the 117th Congress in prayer on January
3rd. Without a doubt, this prayer will be remembered for ending with
“amen and awoman”. However, this was not the gravest concern with the Cleaver’s
prayer. The only god mentioned by name was Brahma, and thus Christians cannot
expect God the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ to answer this prayer.
The prayer began well. It was
appropriately humble, confessing “without your favor and forbearance we enter
this new year relying dangerously on our own fallible nature.” He continues, “control
our tribal tendencies” and give light to “see ourselves and our politics as we
really are, soiled by selfishness, perverted by prejudice, and inveigled by
ideology.” He started winding down by paraphrasing the familiar blessing from
Numbers 6:24-26. So far, so good!
Had Rep. Cleaver ended there with a
simple “amen” it would have been a wonderful prayer to open congress. But, in
the final twenty-seven words, everything came off the rails, theologically
speaking. Before adding the now infamous “awoman” to the end of the prayer,
Cleaver made it clear that “we ask it in name of the monotheistic God, Brahma,
and the God known by many names and many different faiths.”
We cannot expect God the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ to answer this prayer. Simply put, Cleaver didn’t ask Him
to do anything. He asked the Hindu god Brahma to answer it instead. The way he prayed
is like calling your wife by the name of your ex-girlfriend.
Along
with Shiva and Vishnu, Brahma is one of the most important of the countless
Hindu deities (not quite the “monotheistic god” Cleaver mentions). In Hindu
tradition, Brahma is the creator of the universe. But Brahma is not worshiped
with as much devotions as other gods in Hinduism—very few temples are devoted to
him.
To
assume that gods in other religions do the same things or make the same
promises as the God who reveals Himself in the Bible is ignorant. It shows an
unwillingness to learn what other religions teach. Has Brahma promised to hear
your prayers or commanded you to pray in his name? Did he die for your sins?
Has he overcome death for you? He has not done any of these things. He is not
interchangeable with the God revealed in the Bible.
The
prophet Jeremiah compares gods like Brahma to the LORD saying, “Their idols are
like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be
carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do
evil, neither is it in them to do good. There is none like you, O LORD; you are
great, and your name is great in might.” (Jeremiah 10:5-6 ESV See also Isaiah
44:9-20)
Jesus Christ has promised that God
will hear your prayers for His sake (see John 14:13-14 above). Therefore,
Christians pray in Jesus name or as He taught us in the Lord’s Prayer. We know
God will hear us because Jesus sits at His right hand and is praying for us
(see Romans 8:34).
I will gladly affirm what many
others have said, calling Congressman Cleaver to repent, even in this paper.
(For example, I commend to your reading the letter by Rev. Tyler Holt, here on
January 13, 2021.) His prayer was politically acceptable. But what is
acceptable to the world is often directly offensive to Christ Himself.
The LORD is incredibly jealous and
is angry when His people call on other gods. Surely, He is in the case of this
prayer. However, throughout the Old Testament we see Israel constantly calling
on other gods to help them. What does the LORD do in response? He calls His
people to repent and offers forgiveness. Yes, Jesus blood was shed for sins
like this—and all the sins of the world. That’s why we pray in Jesus’ name
alone. I pray Emmanuel Cleaver hasn’t forgotten this.
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