My prayer was to lift the Parliament

Rev Cyril Paul told Newsday yesterday that said his first reaction to Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s comment about his prayer at Monday’s opening of the second session of the eighth Parliament, was one of surprise.

“I had been listening to all that has been going on and so I prepared a prayer, especially for Parliament,” he told Newsday yesterday. He went on: “I said a prayer that was helpful and challenging, and above all, to lift Parliament a few stages higher.” Paul who operates from the Tunapuna Presbyterian Church, caused a stir when within his prayer he said: “We ask Your forgiveness for the times when in our desire to score points we make statements and say things which we know are not true and responsible. We ask Your forgiveness as parliamentarians for the times we fail to do our work conscientiously and well, and we depend on charisma, clout, bluff or exaggeration to save the day for us.”

Commenting on  Paul’s prayer following the opening of Parliament, the Prime Minister said that he would have preferred if the prayer was different. However,  Rev. Paul defended himself yesterday: “My prayer was a good and responsible prayer. I know how to prepare my prayers.” He added that there were a lot of good elements in his prayer, identifying thanksgiving, confession and intercession. “The Prime Minister and I, get along very well, but what is ironic is, he said the President’s speech was a good speech, yet, he had a problem with my prayer. Both of us (the President and himself) walked the same road,” Rev Paul said. When asked if he was targetting any particular politician, the Reverend answered: “I wasn’t targetting any special politician. That prayer was for the whole of Parliament. The prayer was for the country and the people, everybody.”