A Connecticut rabbi, Jeremy Wiederhorn of Westport, delivered the opening prayer in the U.S. House of Representatives Tuesday. Wiederhorn came to the Capitol at the invitation of Rep. Jim Himes, Connecticut’s 4th District Democrat.
Himes noted that it was a particularly “propitious” day to deliver the morning prayer. An hour after Wiederhorn opened the House for business, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress.
Wiederhorn, leader of the Conservative Synagogue in Westport, kept his remarks short, simple, and politically neutral. “Bless our leaders and advisors,” he said, “including the dedicated men and women of this United States Congress… May you grant them the vision to look ahead to our future without forgetting the lessons of our past.”