Pray Tell, Is This News?

AP reports:

Bush says nation praying for W. Va. miners
By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush said Tuesday the nation was praying for 13 men trapped in a West Virginia coal mine and offered federal help to help bring them out, "hopefully in good condition."

"May God bless those who are trapped below the earth," Bush said from the White House as rescue crews scrambled to reach the miners 31 hours after they were trapped underground. ...

"I told [West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin] that Americans all across our country were praying for the miners who are trapped in the mine there in West Virginia," Bush said. "I told him that I appreciated the great outpouring of compassion from the West Virginia citizens toward those worried family members. I also assured him that the federal government will help the folks in West Virginia any way we can to bring those miners out of that mine, hopefully in good condition."

I'm sorry, but I don't think this is being reported because AP is interested in prayer for miners. The headline lets you know. It might as well have been written as:

That Cracker Bush Assumes Smart People
Like Us Are Praying For Miners --
What An Arrogant Idiot He Is!

Presidential prayer has been just a simple matter of fact in US history until this generation of secularist reporters, which makes presidential prayer a news item.

One fine example of presidential prayer is FDR's "Let Our Hearts Be Stout" speech, which after a brief 59-word introduction launched into a beautiful prayer directed to Almighty God. It concluded:

With Thy blessing, we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy. Help us to conquer the apostles of greed and racial arrogances. Lead us to the saving of our country, and with our sister nations into a world unity that will spell a sure peace -- a peace invulnerable to the schemings of unworthy men. And a peace that will let all of men live in freedom, reaping the just rewards of their honest toil.

Thy will be done, Almighty God.

Here's the full text, and here's the audio.

I don't believe the papers the next day made a big deal about the president praying.