Considering the turmoil D.C. Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde created with her recent National Prayer Service sermon before a displeased President Donald Trump at Washington National Cathedral, I'm devoting an edited (for space, not relevant content) version so valued readers can decide how they feel about the appropriateness of her message for that occasion.

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"Those of us gathered here ... are not naïve about the realities of politics. When power, wealth and competing interests are at stake; when views of what America should be are in conflict; when there are ... starkly different understandings of what the right course of action is, there will be winners and losers when votes are cast or decisions made that set the course of public policy and the prioritization of resources. ...

"Not everyone's specific prayers ... will be answered in the way we would like. But for some, the loss of their hopes and dreams will be far more than political defeat, but instead a loss of equality, dignity and livelihood. Given this, is unity among us even possible? And why should we care about it?

"Well, I hope we care, because the culture of contempt that has become normalized in our country threatens to destroy us. We are all bombarded with messages from what sociologists call 'the outrage industrial complex,' some of it driven by external forces........

© El Dorado News Times