Prayer at the Office

In the five weeks I've been working here, I have attended three farewell lunches. All of them have a public grace said -- at today's we held hands -- and one of the men gives the prayer.

Ten years ago, I might have thought this a nice thing with a few concerns for my atheist and other friends. Five years ago, I would be weighing more heavily on the concerns side. Today, I am the atheist, and this is a real "the hell?" for me.

Culturally, I understand it. The prayer, which is the exact same grace my father gives before meals, is a traditional one in this region. I think it's Baptist, but it's not aggressively so.

For those of you who want to know the words are:
"Oh, Lord, we thank you for the food which you have set before us
***
We ask you to bless it to the nourishment of our bodies.
We ask these things in (Christ's/Your) name. Amen."

The asterisks are for the improvised part about the particular meal that has been set before us. In the case of the farewell lunches, thanks are given for the opportunity to work with this person and a prayer for the person's future safety, health, and happiness is included.

Part of me is comforted. These are words from my childhood and a moment of thinking about the meal prepared and "the nourishment of our bodies" is, from my cook's perspective, not a bad thing.

But I can't be the only non-Christian in a government office. If three out of five kids I mentor are Muslim, then I have to think we have a few working for the District. One of the highers up is Jewish. Yet, this, along with prayers taped to desks is a huge part of my office's culture.

I just needed to say.