Continental Congress (September 7, 1774) as recorded in the Journals of the Continental Congress, invited Rev. Mr. Duche' to open the first Congress in Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, with prayer:
<Wednesday, September 7, 1774, 9 o'clock a.m. Agreeable to the resolve of yesterday, the meeting was opened with prayers by the Rev. Mr. Duche'. Voted, That the thanks of Congress be given to Mr. Duche'...for performing divine Service, and for the excellent prayer, which he composed and delivered on the occasion.> 1774CC002
In a letter to his wife, Abigail, John Adams described that prayer:
<When the Congress met, Mr. Cushing made a motion that it should be opened with Prayer. It was opposed by Mr. Jay of New York, and Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina because we were so divided in religious sentiments, some Episcopalians, some Quakers, some Anabaptists, some Presbyterians, and some Congregationalists, that we could not join in the same act of worship.
Mr. Samuel Adams arose and said that he was no bigot, and could hear a Prayer from any gentleman of Piety and virtue, who was at the same time a friend to his Country. He was a stranger in Philadelphia, but had heard that Mr. Duche' deserved that character and therefore he moved that Mr. Duche', an Episcopal clergyman might be desired to read Prayers to Congress tomorrow morning. The motion was seconded, and passed in the affirmative. Mr.
Randolph, our president, vailed on Mr. Duche', and received for answer, that if his health would permit, he certainly would.
Accordingly, next morning [the Reverend Mr. Duche'] appeared with his clerk and in his pontificals, and read several prayers in the established form, and read the collect for the seventh day of September, which was the thirty-fifth Psalm. You must remember, this was the next morning after we heard the horrible rumor of the cannonade of Boston.
I never saw a greater effect upon an audience. It seem as if heaven had ordained that Psalm to be read on that morning. After this, Mr. Duche', unexpectedly to every body, struck out into an extemporary prayer, which filled the bosom of every man present. I must confess, I never heard a better prayer, or one so well pronounced.
Episcopalian as he is, Dr. Cooper himself [Adams' pastor] never prayed with such fervor, such ardor, such earnestness and pathos, and in language so elegant and sublime, for America, for the Congress, for the province of Massachusetts Bay, and especially the town of Boston. It has had an excellent effect upon everybody here. I must beg you to read that Psalm."> 1774CC004
The 35th Psalm, the Psalter for September 7th, was read by Reverend Mr. Duche' in the first Continental Congress:
<Plead my cause, Oh, Lord, with them that strive with me, fight against them that fight against me. Take hold of buckler and shield, and rise up for my help. Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me; Say to my soul, "I am your salvation." Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life; Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me.> 1774CC005
The First Prayer in Congress, offered extemporaneously by Rev. Mr. Duche' in Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, on September 7, 1774:
<O Lord, our Heavenly Father, high and mighty, King of kings, and Lord of lords, who dost from Thy throne behold all the dwellers on earth, and reignest with power supreme and uncontrolled over all the Kingdoms, Empires, and Governments; look down in mercy, we beseech Thee, on these our American States, who have fled to Thee from the rod of the oppressor, and thrown themselves on Thy gracious protection, desiring to be henceforth dependent only on Thee; to Thee have the appealed for the righteousness of their cause; to Thee do they now look up for that countenance and support, which Thou alone canst give; take them, therefore, Heavenly Father, under Thy nurturing care; give them wisdom in Council and valor in the field; defeat the malicious designs of our cruel adversaries; convince them of the unrighteousness of their cause; and if they persist in their sanguinary purposes,
O! let the voice of Thine own unerring justice, sounding in their hearts, constrain them to drop the weapons of war, from their unnerved hands in the day of battle!
Be Thou present O God of Wisdom and direct the counsel of this Honorable Assembly; enable them to settle all things on the best and surest foundations; that the scene of blood may be speedily closed; that Order, Harmony and Peace may be effectually restored, and the Truth and Justice, Religion and Piety, prevail and flourish among the people.
Preserve the health of their bodies, and the vigor of their minds, shower down on them, and the millions they here represent, such temporal Blessings as Thou seest expedient for them in this world, and crown them with everlasting Glory in the world to come. All this we ask in the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ, Thy Son and our Saviour, Amen.> 1774CC006
The Library of Congress, from the collected reports of the various patriots, recorded on a historical placard the effect of that first prayer upon Congress:
<Washington was kneeling there, and Henry, Randolph, Rutledge, Lee, and Jay, and by their side there stood, bowed in reverence, the Puritan Patriots of New England, who at that moment had reason to believe that an armed soldiery was wasting their humble households. It was believed that Boston had been bombarded and destroyed.
They prayed fervently "for America, for Congress, for the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and especially for the town of Boston," and who can realize the emotion with which they turned imploringly to Heaven for Divine interposition and-"It was enough" says Mr. Adams, "to melt a heart of stone. I saw the tears gush into the eyes of the old, grave, Pacific Quakers of Philadelphia."> 1774CC007
--
American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1774CC001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress, September 6, 1774. The Journals of the Continental Congress 1774- 1789 (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1905), Vol. I, p. 26.
1774CC002. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774. The Journals of the Continental Congress 1774- 1789 (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1905), Vol. I, p. 27.
1774CC003. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774. First Prayer in Congress-Beautiful Reminiscence (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress). John S.C. Abbot, George Washington (NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1875, 1917), p. 187. Gary DeMar, God and Government-A Biblical and Historical Study (Atlanta, GA: American Vision Press, 1982), Vol. I, p. 108.
1774CC004. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774. Charles Francis Adams (son of John Quincy Adams and grandson of John Adams), ed., Letters of John Adams Addressed To His Wife (Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1841), Vol. I, pp. 23-24. Edmund Fuller and David E. Green, God in the White House-The Faiths of American Presidents (NY: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1968), pp. 21-22. L.H. Butterfield, Marc Frielander, and Mary-Jo King, eds., The Book of Abigail and John-Selected Letters of The Adams Family 1762-1784 (Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England: Harvard University Press, 1975), p. 76.
1774CC005. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774, Rev. Mr. Duche' reading Psalm 35. "Our Christian Heritage," Letter from Plymouth Rock (Marlborough, NH: The Plymouth Rock Foundation), pp. 2-3.
1774CC006. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774. First Prayer in Congress-Beautiful Reminiscence (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress) Gary DeMar, God and Government-A Biblical and Historical Study (Atlanta, GA: American Vision Press, 1982), Vol. I, p. 108. John S.C. Abbot, George Washington (NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1875, 1917), p. 187. Reynolds, The Maine Scholars Manual (Portland, ME: Dresser, McLellan & Co., 1880). George Otis, The Solution to the Crisis in America, Revised and Enlarged Edition (Van Nuys, CA.: Fleming H. Revell Company; Bible Voice, Inc., 1970, 1972, foreword by Pat Boone), p. 57.
1774CC007. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Continental Congress. September 7, 1774. First Prayer in Congress-Beautiful Reminiscence (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress). Gary DeMar, God and Government-A Biblical and Historical Study (Atlanta, GA: American Vision Press, 1982), Vol. I, p. 108. John S.C. Abbot, George Washington (NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1875, 1917), p. 187.