KO Conference Assistant Conference Minister Rev. Rachael Pryor Delivers Gubernatorial Invocation
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly
On Monday, January 9, the inauguration of Kansas Governor Laura Kelly's second term opened with an invocation from Lindsborg resident Rev. Rachael Pryor. The swearing-in took place at noon, following the Governor's interfaith service in which Rev. Pryor was one of six statewide faith leaders to offer a brief homily. The theme for the 2023 Inauguration was "Prosperity, Unity, and Innovation." Special guests of Rev. Pryor included her daughter Greta, and Dr. Pari Ford, Associate Professor of Mathematics at Bethany College.
The invitation from the Governor's office stems from Rev. Pryor's years of participation in statewide advocacy, predominantly with Kansas Interfaith Action (KIFA). “We were thrilled that Rachael was invited to participate in the inauguration in this way,” says KIFA Executive Director Rabbi Moti Rieber. “It's a testament to her hard work, her standing as a moral leader in the community, and to the place that KIFA has carved out in our state. And of course her words were perfect for the occasion - she did a wonderful job!”
Rev. Pryor has also been invited to offer opening prayers for the State House of Representatives in previous sessions. She has been active in campaigns to expand access to healthcare for all Kansans, reduce poverty through economic justice initiatives, and support renewable energy policies, among other areas.
Rev. Pryor is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ, and previously served as Interim Campus Pastor at Bethany College and Interim Pastor of Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church. She was later called as pastor of Andover Lutheran Church in Windom.Based in a home office, Rev. Pryor currently serves as Associate Conference Minister of the Kansas-Oklahoma Conference, United Church of Christ.
Since 2014, Rev. Pryor and her family have made their home here in Lindsborg where they are active members of the community. Their four children attend Smoky Valley Public Schools and the Lindsborg Child Development Center. Rev. Pryor's spouse, Dr. Adam Pryor, serves as Provost of Bethany College.
The Prayer
Rev. Rachael Pryor
United across diverse faiths and traditions by the promise of civic service for the common good, let us join together in this sacred moment of dedication.
By many names, in many ways, we call upon a divine inspiration, a holy presence: close to us as breathing and distant as the farthest star. Persevere, O Holy One, from those bright stars, down to our hearts, even when we are difficult and stubborn people, true to our Kansas roots.
When our hearts are hardened by greed for individual gain; by fear of those who are different; by the seduction of political advantage; liberate us to be charitable, hopeful, and decent as befits a vocation to public service. Let us be worthy of the calling to which we are called.
Bless us with prosperity that transcends economic advantage for those who already have it: a prosperity that reaches every family farm, small business, and forgotten city block across this State; a wealth measured not only by dollars but by classrooms with enough teachers, by cups of clean water, by books borrowed and read, by loving homes for foster children, by access to health care, by roads safe to drive on, and by enough food on every table.
When our mouths are choking on words of division, mockery, bigotry, and distortion of the truth, loose our tongues for compromise, humility, and perhaps even the occasional moment of silence in which to listen to someone we don’t already agree with.
Bless us with unity that does not demand uniformity; with community that overcomes polarization; with faith and mercy that turns strangers into neighbors so that we look upon one another — every single other — as deserving of justice, peace, and human dignity.
When our heads are bent to the ordinances and spreadsheets of The Way it has Always Been Done, nudge our faces firmly upward with your divine hand under our chins, so that our gaze might instead fall on the horizon of what may be, if only we dare to dream bigger.
Bless us with innovation that opens not only new markets, new investments, and new technologies; but also new paths out of poverty, new approaches to criminal justice, new relationships with our precious planet.
Spirit of Divine Wisdom, inspire our Governor, our Senators and Representatives, our Justices and Secretaries and every single one of our elected officials across this State, with the grace they will need to fulfill their commitments to public service for the whole public. Strengthen them with hope and imagination to rise perpetually above party lines and impotent pragmatism. Charge them with the mandate of the ancient prophets, to become Menders of Broken Walls, Restorers of Livable Streets, Pursuers of the Impossible. Not a Red way or a Blue Way, let Kansas once more find a better way, our own way, through every difficulty, to the stars that illuminate a bright future for us all. Amen.