State of Illinois
91^st General Assembly
Public Acts

Public Act 91-0320

HB1953 Enrolled                                LRB9105701MWgc

    AN ACT to amend the  State  Commemorative  Dates  Act  by
adding Section 110.

    WHEREAS, Civic prayers and national days of prayer have a
long  and  venerable  history in our constitutional republic,
dating back to the First Continental Congress in 1775; and

    WHEREAS,  The  Declaration  of  Independence,  our  first
statement as Americans of national purpose and identity, made
"the Laws of Nature and Nature's God" the foundation  of  our
United  States  of  America  and  asserted  that  people have
inalienable rights that are God-given; and

    WHEREAS, President Truman proclaimed a  National  Day  of
Prayer in 1952; and

    WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court has affirmed the
right  of  state  legislatures  to  open  their sessions with
prayer, and both houses of the Illinois General Assembly,  as
well as the United States Supreme Court and the United States
Congress themselves, begin each day with prayer; and

    WHEREAS,  In  1988,  legislation  setting aside the first
Thursday in May of each year as a National Day of Prayer  was
passed  unanimously  by both Houses of Congress and signed by
President Ronald Reagan; and

    WHEREAS, The National Day of Prayer is an opportunity for
Americans  of  all  faiths  to  join  in  united  prayer   to
acknowledge  our  dependence  on  God,  to  give  thanks  for
blessings  received,  to  request healing for wounds endured,
and to ask God to guide our leaders and  bring  wholeness  to
the United States and her citizens; and

    WHEREAS,  It  is fitting and proper to give thanks to God
by observing a  day  of  prayer  in  Illinois  when  all  may
acknowledge  our  blessings  and  express gratitude for them,
while recognizing the need for  strengthening  religious  and
moral values in our State and nation; therefore

    Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section 5.  The State Commemorative Dates Act is  amended
by adding Section 110 as follows:

    (5 ILCS 490/110 new)
    Sec. 110.  Day of Prayer in Illinois.  The first Thursday
in  May  of  each  year  is  designated as a Day of Prayer in
Illinois, and the citizens of Illinois are urged  to  observe
the   day   in   ways   appropriate  to  its  importance  and
significance.

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
becoming law.