could I get an opinion?

[Steve Cloutier]

>On 26 Jul 2008 at 19:18, Donna Halper wrote:
>
>
> > As many of you know, several days ago, Barack Obama was in Israel,
> > where he went to the Western Wall, one of Judaism's holiest sites, and
> > said a prayer.  He also wrote his prayer, as is the custom, and
> > inserted it into a crevice in the wall.  As he left, an ultra-Orthodox
> > rabbinical student removed the prayer and brought it to a newspaper,
> > which promptly published it.  That is my question. Would you have
> > published Obama's private prayer, left at one of Israel's holiest
> > sites?
>
>
>Well, I think what the rabbinical student did was reprehensible, but
>that's the easy part.  I'm afraid that religious fundamentalists of
>all strips manage to do some incredibly ungodly things in the name of
>their religion.
>
>
>That said, I wonder just what expecation Obama had that his prayer
>would be private.  I don't know how much he knew about what happens
>to prayers placed in the wall.  I understand that they are removed
>regularly, otherwise the volume of paper would be overwhelming.  I
>haven't yet seen the content of his prayer, so I can't begin to
>guess, but I suspect he probably expected that the prayer would at
>some point become public.  He may even have planned it that way.

As a highly public figure, whose religious leanings are under scrutiny, 
there is _no way_ the Campaign did *NOT* know the prayer would be made 
public.  Should the student have looked?  From a strictly religious 
standpoint NO.  Did the Obama campaign expect it?  Absolutely.  They are 
very smart.  This sort of thing happens all the time with public figures.

Having read the prayer, it was, IN MY HUMBLE (emphasize HUMBLE) *opinion* 
that it was very likely staged.  It's the sort of prayer everyone would 
like any public figure to pray.  What do they say - "too perfect"??

But, to answer the question, no I am not horrified or even offended that 
the student got the prayer.  Obama is a political figure, and everything 
everything everything he does in public is going to be scrutinized.  Since 
we're on the subject, the Bible says real gifts, acts of service, prayers, 
fasts, etc. are done in private, between you and God, so only the two of 
you know what you did and that you did not do (whatever it was) to bring 
recognition to yourself.  I'm not at all saying Obama shouldn't have prayed 
in public - but that the real thing happens in private.

Regards,

Steve