Sadly, the invocation prayer by Bishop Gene Robinson was not aired on the HBO-only broadcast of today’s inaugural kickoff and concert. HBO instead cut into the proceedings after the invocation and a short break.

Update #1: It also appears that Robinson’s mic was off for the bulk of the prayer.

I am really surprised and disheartened at HBO’s lack of sensitivity, particularly in view of recent events like the passing of Proposition 8 and the choosing of Rick Warren to deliver the opening prayer of the inauguration. I know many were looking forward to Bishop Gene Robinson’s words, both religious and not. It added balance to the Warren pick, and also served as an example of the inclusiveness that Obama so often talks about.

Update #2: A video of Robinson’s prayer has fortunately surfaced on YouTube. It’s clear his mic was working (despite earlier reports). Perhaps there were issues with the speakers farther away from the stage. HBO also indicated via email this morning that the decision to exclude the prayer was made by the Presidential Inaugural Committee, and not HBO. Very, very unfortunate.

Update #3: The Obama camp responds: “We had always intended and planned for Rt. Rev. Robinson’s invocation to be included in the televised portion of yesterday’s program. We regret the error in executing this plan – but are gratified that hundreds of thousands of people who gathered on the mall heard his eloquent prayer for our nation that was a fitting start to our event.” — PIC communications director Josh Earnest

Update # 4 (final?): The entire program, including Bishop Gene Robinson’s invocation, will be shown on the jumbo screens on the Mall tomorrow to entertain the assembled crowd, according to a source for politico.com. Is it too little too late? Or has the damage already been done?

A transcript of Robinson’s prayer below…

A Prayer for the Nation and Our Next President, Barack Obama

By The Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop of New Hampshire

“Welcome to Washington! The fun is about to begin, but first, please join me in pausing for a moment, to ask God’s blessing upon our nation and our next president.

O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will…

Bless us with tears – for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women from many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.

Bless us with anger – at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

Bless us with discomfort – at the easy, simplistic “answers” we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians, instead of the truth, about ourselves and the world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience – and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be “fixed” anytime soon, and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.

Bless us with humility – open to understanding that our own needs must always be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance – replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences, and an understanding that in our diversity, we are stronger.

Bless us with compassion and generosity – remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable in the human community, whether across town or across the world.

And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of President of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, and inspire him with Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for ALL the people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our Ship of State needs a steady, calm captain in these times.

Give him stirring words, for we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership, there will be neither red nor blue states, but the United States.

Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination, that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.

Give him the strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.

And please, God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking FAR too much of this one. We know the risk he and his wife are taking for all of us, and we implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand – that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.

AMEN.”

While the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C. did make an appearance (and they sounded wonderful), they were neither credited or included in the finale.

Contact HBO and let them know how you feel.

If any audio or video of the prayer becomes available, I will post it here.

I encourage everyone who has time on Sunday to come on out and join us. Bring your family, your friends. And if you can’t, support some who is walking.
Like me for instance. 🙂

It really does make a difference.

Looking back on Pride there was plenty to be proud of, but one thing in particular stands out.

We can now say “I do”.  

Many of us have waited a long time to be able to say those words and have it mean something. Some almost their entire lives. And it is they I am most proud of this Pride. Their tenacity, their patience and their strength have made the world more equal for all of us.

It was no surprise that many of them marched in this year’s parade, and the event was richer for it. I will remember this year’s Pride for a long, long time.

View photos from this year’s San Francisco Pride parade.

Yesterday we saw Sex & The City for the second time and it was just as sweet as the first. I think one of the things that made me fall in love with the show was the enduring friendships the girls shared. They could always count on each other during the good times and the bad. They were more than just friends, they were family, and sometimes while watching the show they felt like a part of my family, reminding me of the more difficult times in my own life and the friends who helped me get through them. 

So when the Pride flags were raised on Market Street last week, it wasn’t gay marriage, the film festival or even the Pride parade which leapt to mind. It was my friends.

My best memories of Pride are those that I spent with friends, or more accurately, my extended family before my real family even knew who I was. Every Pride we would venture out because it was OUR day. Our day to celebrate. Our day to be proud of who we were.

Of course we are all older now. Many of us can’t be bothered. Some have moved away and some have moved on with their lives. Friends who were once close, are now distant and seldom seen. And the friendships that were once easy and enduring, now require more work than they should just to keep them alive.

So while Pride is in the air it doesn’t smell as sweet as I remember. But I’m thankful to be in a secure and loving relationship. I am happy that my parents accept me for who I am, and that their love is unconditional. And I am glad I still have friends who will call just for the sake of calling, just to say hello. 

For all these things I am grateful, and not just during Pride, or Thanksgiving, or Christmas… but all year long. It just took a rainbow for me to realize it.