###
Ed.
Note: Rev. Luis León delivered the benediction:
The Reverend Dr. Luis
León
The Reverend Dr. Luis León, fourteenth Rector of St. John's
Church, began his tenure at St. John’s in 1995. His specialty is
building inner city parishes through spiritual leadership, preaching,
excellence in worship and liturgical music, stewardship and outreach
that involves parish members in the community. Luis teaches courses
nationwide in parish building and stewardship and is a frequently
requested commencement speaker.
Before his time at St. John's, Luis served as Rector of Trinity Church
in Wilmington, Delaware, and St. Paul's Church in Paterson, New Jersey.
St. Paul's, an urban parish, grew during his tenure from 35
parishioners to several hundred. In 1985 St. Paul's was named "Church
of the Year" by the New Jersey Council of Churches, and in 1986 Luis
was awarded the Bishop’s Outstanding Service Award in recognition of
the "extraordinary contributions made to the life, quality, and the
spirit of the church in this diocese [Newark]."
From 1977 until 1980, Luis served as Assistant Rector at St. Peter's
Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. He then was Director of Refugee
Resettlement for the Diocese of Maryland for two years.
Luis began his spiritual journey when he was baptized into the
Episcopal Church in Guantánamo, Cuba. In 1961 he came to the
United States as part of the "Peter Pan" flights out of Cuba, joining
thousands of children whose parents, at that time in history, feared
for their future in Cuba. He was 12 years old when he arrived in the
U.S., and was supported by the Episcopal Church in Miami.
Luis attended the University of the South, graduating in 1971. He
received a Masters in Divinity degree from the Virginia Theological
Seminary in 1977 and in 1999 was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity
degree from the University of the South. He is a member of the Board of
Regents at the University of the South and was a founding member of
both the Washington Interfaith Network and the Wilmington [Delaware]
Interfaith Network. In 2005 he offered the invocation at the
inauguration of the President of the United States.
Luis is married to Lu Stanton León. They have two children,
Emilia and Sofia. Lu is a professional writer, editor and consultant.
For
Immediate
Release: Friday, January 4, 2013
PIC
Announces
Supreme
Court
Justices
Selected
to
Swear-In
President
Obama,
Vice
President
Biden
WASHINGTON, DC --
Today the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) announced that Chief
Justice of the United States, John G. Roberts, Jr., will administer the
oath of office for President Barack Obama at the Inaugural swearing-in
ceremonies on Sunday, January 20 and Monday, January 21, and Supreme
Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor will administer the oath of
office for Vice President Joseph Biden.
“I will be honored to again stand on the Inaugural platform and take
part in this important American tradition,” said President Obama. “I
look forward to having Chief Justice John Roberts administer my oath of
office as we gather to celebrate not just a president or vice
president, but the strength and determination of the American people.”
President Obama followed presidential precedent in choosing the Chief
Justice to administer his oath of office. Vice President Biden
personally selected Associate Justice Sotomayor, who will be the first
Hispanic and fourth female judge to administer an oath of office.
Three women have previously sworn-in presidents and vice presidents:
Judge Sarah T. Hughes swore-in President Johnson in 1963; Justice
Sandra Day O’Connor swore-in Vice President Dan Quayle in 1989; and
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg swore-in Vice President Al Gore in 1997.
"It's an incredible honor to have Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor
swear me in,” Vice President Biden said. “I believed strongly that she
would make a great Justice, and it was one of the greatest pleasures of
my career to be involved in her selection to the Court. From the
first
time I met her, I was impressed by Justice Sotomayor’s commitment to
justice and opportunity for all Americans, and she continues to
exemplify those values today. Above all, I’m happy for the chance to be
sworn in by a friend – and someone I know will continue to do great
things.”
Historically, Inaugural Ceremonies are not held on a Sunday because
Courts and other public institutions are not open. This year, in
accordance with the requirements of the United States Constitution,
President Obama and Vice President Biden will officially be sworn in on
Sunday, January 20, 2013. The following day, Monday, January 21, 2013,
a ceremonial swearing-in that is open to the public will take place on
the West Front of the United States Capitol.
The official swearing-in ceremony on Sunday is being planned by the
PIC. The ceremonial swearing-in on Monday is overseen by the
Joint
Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.
###
For
Immediate
Release: Tuesday, January 8, 2013
PIC
Announces Participants Selected to Deliver Invocation, Benediction for
Swearing-In of President Obama and Vice President Biden
WASHINGTON, DC --
The
Presidential
Inaugural
Committee
(PIC)
announced today that Mrs.
Myrlie Evers-Williams has been selected to deliver the invocation and
Rev. Louie Giglio has been selected to deliver the benediction at the
Inaugural swearing-in ceremony of President Obama and Vice President
Biden on Monday, January 21.
President Obama was involved in the selection of participants in the
Inaugural program, including Mrs. Myrlie Evers-Williams and Rev. Louie
Giglio.
“Vice President Biden and I are honored that Myrlie Evers-Williams and
Rev. Louie Giglio will participate in the Inaugural ceremony,”
President Obama said today. “Their voices have inspired many people
across this great nation within the faith community and beyond. Their
careers reflect the ideals that the Vice President and I continue to
pursue for all Americans – justice, equality, and opportunity.”
"I am humbled to have been asked to deliver the invocation for the 57th
inauguration of the President of the United States—especially in light
of this historical time in America when we will celebrate the 50th
Anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement,” Myrlie Evers-Williams said
today. “It is indeed an exhilarating experience to have the distinct
honor of representing that era."
“It is my privilege to have the opportunity to lead our nation in
prayer at the upcoming inauguration in Washington, DC,” said Rev. Louie
Giglio. “During these days it is essential for our nation to stand
together as one. And, as always, it is the right time to humble
ourselves before our Maker. May we all look up to our God, from
whom
we can receive mercy, grace and truth to strengthen our lives, our
families and our nation. I am honored to be invited by the President to
lead our nation as we look up to God, and as we look ahead to a future
that honors and reflects the One who has given us every good and
perfect gift.”
Historically, Inaugural Ceremonies are not held on a Sunday because
Courts and other public institutions are not open. This year, in
accordance with the requirements of the United States Constitution,
President Obama and Vice President Biden will officially be sworn in on
Sunday, January 20, 2013. The following day, Monday, January 21, 2013,
a ceremonial swearing-in that is open to the public will take place on
the West Front of the United States Capitol.
The official swearing-in ceremony on Sunday is being planned by the
PIC. The ceremonial swearing-in on Monday is overseen by the
Joint
Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.
Myrlie Evers-Williams Biography
Myrlie Evers-Williams served as the chair of the NAACP from 1995 to
1998. The widow of Medgar Evers – the NAACP’s Mississippi Field
Secretary who in 1963 was gunned down in the driveway of his home in
Jackson, Mississippi – she fought for 30 years to bring his assassin to
justice, and preserves his legacy through the Medgar Evers Institute.
An author of three books about their civil rights’ work, she currently
serves as a distinguished scholar at Alcorn University in Lorman,
Mississippi. Evers-Williams became the first black woman to head
the
Southern California Democratic Women’s Division. She has received 16
honorary degrees from leading colleges and universities in addition to
numerous civil rights, human rights and community awards.
Reverend Louie Giglio Biography
The Reverend Louie Giglio is the pastor of Passion City Church in
Atlanta, Georgia, and the founder of Passion Conferences, a movement
gathering college-aged young people since 1997 in events across the
country and around the world. Most recently, Passion hosted more than
60,000 people at Passion 2013 in the Georgia Dome, uniting students in
worship and prayer and raising awareness about modern-day slavery,
human trafficking. In 2008, Louie and his wife Shelley led the team
that planted Passion City Church, a local community of faith with the
spirit of the Passion movement. Their desire is to inspire this
generation to live for what matters most.
###
Ed. Note: Rev. Giglio withdrew after
ThinkProgress reported on a sermon he delivered in the 1990s in which
he preached "rabidly anti-LGBT views." Below is the letter he
posted Jan. 10 on his passioncitychurchblog:
Dear PCC Family,
Though I was invited by the President of the United States to pray
at his upcoming inauguration, after conversations between our team and
the White House I am no longer serving in that role. I sent the
following statement to the White House today:
I am honored to be invited by the
President to give the benediction at the upcoming inaugural on January
21. Though the President and I do not agree on every issue, we have
fashioned a friendship around common goals and ideals, most notably,
ending slavery in all its forms.
Due to a message of mine that has
surfaced from 15-20 years ago, it is likely that my participation, and
the prayer I would offer, will be dwarfed by those seeking to make
their agenda the focal point of the inauguration. Clearly, speaking on
this issue has not been in the range of my priorities in the past
fifteen years. Instead, my aim has been to call people to ultimate
significance as we make much of Jesus Christ.
Neither
I, nor our team, feel it best serves the core message and goals we are
seeking to accomplish to be in a fight on an issue not of our choosing,
thus I respectfully withdraw my acceptance of the President’s
invitation. I will continue to pray regularly for the President, and
urge the nation to do so. I will most certainly pray for him on
Inauguration Day.
Our
nation is deeply divided and hurting, and more than ever we need God’s
grace and mercy in our time of need.
The issue of homosexuality (which a particular message of mine some
20 years ago addressed) is one of the most difficult our nation will
navigate. However, individuals’ rights of freedom, and the collective
right to hold differing views on any subject is a critical balance we,
as a people, must recover and preserve.
As a pastor, my mission is to love people, and lead them well, while
lifting up the name of Jesus above anything else. I’m confident that
anyone who knows me or has listened to the multitude of messages I have
given in the last decade would most likely conclude that I am not
easily characterized as being opposed to people—any people. Rather, I
am constantly seeking to understand where all people are coming from
and how to best serve them as I point them to Jesus.
In all things, the most helpful thing I can do is to invite each of
us to wrestle with scripture and its implications for our lives. God’s
words trump all opinions, including mine, and in the end, I believe
God’s words lead to life.
My greatest desire is that we not be distracted from the things we
are focused on…seeing people in our city come to know Jesus, and
speaking up for the last and least of these throughout the world.
Honored to be your pastor,
Louie
HRC [Human Rights Campaign]
Blog Jan. 10, 2013
Anti-LGBT Pastor
Removed from President
Obama’s Inaugural Program
Pastor Louis Giglio,
who had been slated
to perform the benediction
at President Obama’s inauguration, has withdrawn
from the program. Giglio had a history of anti-LGBT rhetoric, including
advocating for ex-gay therapy. HRC President Chad Griffin released the
following statement in response to this news:
"It was the right
decision. Participants
in the Inaugural
festivities should unite rather than divide. Choosing an affirming and
fair-minded voice as his replacement would be in keeping with the tone
the president wants to set for his Inaugural."
For
Immediate
Release: Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Presidential
Inaugural
Committee
Announces
Inaugural
Poet
Richard Blanco is the
Youngest and First Latino or LGBT Person Selected
as the Inaugural Poet
WASHINGTON, DC -- Today,
the Presidential Inauguration Committee (PIC) announced that Richard
Blanco will serve as the Inaugural poet at the swearing-in ceremony on
Monday, January 21. Blanco will be the youngest-ever Inaugural
poet
and the first Hispanic or LGBT person to recite a poem at the
swearing-in ceremony.
“I’m honored that Richard Blanco will join me and Vice President Biden
at our second Inaugural,” President Obama said today. “His
contributions to the fields of poetry and the arts have already paved a
path forward for future generations of writers. Richard’s writing will
be wonderfully fitting for an Inaugural that will celebrate the
strength of the American people and our nation’s great diversity.”
Born in Spain to Cuban exiles, Blanco’s parents emigrated to New York
City days after his birth and eventually settled in Miami. Blanco began
his career as a consultant engineer. Writing about abstract concepts
and preparing arguments on behalf of his clients helped Blanco
think
about the “engineering” of language, and he left his job in 1999 for
the creative writing faculty at Central Connecticut State University
until 2001. Thereafter he served as instructor at various universities
throughout the country, including American and Georgetown universities,
all the while maintaining his career in consulting engineer.
Blanco's career as an English-language Latino poet gained momentum
when his first collection, City of a Hundred Fires, won the Agnes Lynch
Starrett Poetry Prize from the University of Pittsburgh. Blanco's
second book of poetry, Directions to The Beach of the Dead, won the PEN
American Center Beyond Margins Award. His third collection,
Looking for The Gulf Motel, was published in 2012.
As a writer, Blanco explores the collective American experience of
cultural negotiation through the lens of family and love, particularly
his mother’s life shaped by exile, his relationship with his father,
and the passing of a generation of relatives. His work
also explores
the intersection of his cultural identities as a Cuban-American gay
man.
"I’m beside myself, bestowed with this great honor, brimming over with
excitement, awe, and gratitude,” Blanco said today. “In many ways, this
is the very ‘stuff’ of the American Dream, which underlies so much of
my work and my life’s story—America’s story, really. I am
thrilled by
the thought of coming together during this great occasion to celebrate
our country and its people through the power of poetry.”
In addition to writing poetry, Blanco has worked to strengthen
communities and support neighbors, from working with students on
writing and interpreting poems throughout the country to serving as a
member of his town’s Planning Board in Bethel, Maine where he currently
lives. His commitment reflects the ideals of the National Day of
Service, and demonstrates that, as President Obama has said, we can all
give back to our communities.
The first inaugural poet was Robert Frost at President Kennedy’s 1961
inauguration. In 1993, at the inauguration of President Clinton, Maya
Angelou became the second inaugural poet and the first to read an
original poem at an inauguration. She was followed by Miller Williams
in 1997 and Elizabeth Alexander in 2009.
President Obama was involved in the selection of participants in the
Inaugural program, including Richard Blanco.
For
Immediate Release: Wednesday, January 9, 2013
PIC Announces Musical
Artists Selected to Perform at the 57th
Presidential
Inauguration
WASHINGTON, DC --
The
Presidential
Inaugural
Committee
(PIC)
announced
today the musical
artists selected to perform at the 57th
Presidential Inauguration. Beyoncé, Kelly Clarkson, and
James Taylor
will all perform at the inauguration, which will take place on the West
Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 21, 2013.
“Vice President Biden and I are honored to have these wonderfully
talented musical artists perform at the Inaugural ceremony,” President
Obama said today. “Their music is often at the heart of the American
story and speaks to folks across the country.”
Beyoncé will sing the National Anthem, Kelly Clarkson will
perform “My
Country Tis of Thee,” and James Taylor will sing “America the
Beautiful.”
President Obama was involved in the selection of participants in the
Inaugural program, including the musical performers. Other ceremonial
participants include Myrlie Evers-Williams, who will give the
invocation; Richard Blanco, who will serve as the Inaugural poet; and
Reverend Louie Giglio, who will deliver the Benediction.
Participant Biographies:
Beyoncé has become one of the most widely
recognized
and highly respected women in pop culture. She emerged as a founding
member and lead singer and songwriter of Destiny's Child and later
developed into an iconic solo artist, actress, philanthropist and
businesswoman. She has released four #1 solo albums and has sold
over
75 million albums worldwide. Her work has earned her numerous awards
and accolades, including 16 Grammy Awards. Billboard named her
the Top
Female Artist and Top Radio Songs Artist of the 2000s decade. The
Recording Industry Association of America also recognized
Beyoncé as
the Top Certified Artist of the 2000s.
James Taylor’s music embodies the art of songwriting
in its most personal and universal form. In a career spanning
four
decades, with close to 100 million albums sold and five Grammy Awards,
his immediately recognizable warm baritone, introspective lyrics
and
unique guitar playing still blaze a path to which musicians throughout
the world aspire. In 2011 James was awarded the National Medal of
Arts
by President Obama at The White House and in 2012 he was awarded the
distinguished Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French
government. Both medals are their nation’s highest honors for
artistic
excellence recognizing outstanding achievements and support of the arts.
Kelly Clarkson has released five studio albums
and one
greatest hits album, sold more than 20 million albums worldwide and has
had 10 singles in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. A
global
superstar, Clarkson has won two Grammy Awards, four American Music
Awards, two ACM Awards, a CMA Award and 12 Billboard Music
Awards. Her
most recent studio album, Stronger, is certified
Platinum by the R.I.A.A. and was recently nominated for four 2013
Grammy Awards.
###
For
Immediate
Release:
Thursday, January 10, 2013
PIC Announces Historic Bibles
Selected for Swearing-In Ceremonies
WASHINGTON, DC -- Today
the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) announced the Bibles that
President Obama and Vice President Biden will use at their swearing-in
ceremonies on Sunday, January 20, and Monday, January 21.
On Sunday, January 20, President Obama will take the oath of office
using the Robinson Family Bible. On Monday, January 21, the President
will take the oath of office using two Bibles: the Bible used by
President Lincoln at his first Inauguration, which the President used
in 2009, and a Bible used by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“President Obama is honored to use these Bibles at the swearing-in
ceremonies,” said Steve Kerrigan, President and CEO of the PIC. “On the
50th anniversary of the March on Washington and 150th
anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, this historic moment is a
reflection of the extraordinary progress we’ve made as a nation.”
Though there is no constitutional requirement for the use of a Bible
during the swearing-in, Presidents have traditionally used Bibles for
the ceremony, choosing a volume with personal or historical
significance. In 2009, President Obama became the first President sworn
in using the Lincoln Bible since its initial use in 1861.
The Robinson Family Bible was selected specifically for the occasion.
The bible was a gift from the First Lady’s father, Fraser Robinson III,
to his mother, LaVaughn Delores Robinson on Mother’s Day in 1958. Mrs.
Robinson was the first African-American woman manager of a Moody Bible
Institute’s bookstore and she used the Bible regularly.
The Lincoln Bible is part of the collections of the Library of Congress
and was originally purchased by William Thomas Carroll, Clerk of the
Supreme Court, for use during Lincoln’s swearing-in ceremony on March
4, 1861. The Bible itself is bound in burgundy velvet with a
gold-washed white metal rim around the three outside edges of both
covers, and all of its edges are heavily gilded.
The King Bible was Dr. King’s “traveling bible.” An avid reader who was
constantly on the road, Dr. King typically traveled with a selection of
books that included this Bible. It was used for inspiration and
preparing sermons and speeches, including during Dr. King’s time as
pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama.
“We know our father would be deeply moved to see President Obama take
the Oath of Office using his bible,” Dr. King’s children said today.
“His ‘traveling bible’ inspired him as he fought for freedom, justice
and equality, and we hope it can be a source of strength for the
President as he begins his second term. With the Inauguration less than
two weeks away, we join Americans across the country in embracing this
opportunity to celebrate how far we have come, honor the legacy of
Martin Luther King Jr. through service, and rededicate ourselves to the
work ahead.”
Members of the King family will also join Americans across the country
to honor the life and legacy of Dr. King by participating in National
Day of Service events on Saturday, January 19. Additionally, a float in
the Inaugural parade will commemorate Dr. King’s enduring legacy.
On Sunday and Monday, Vice President Biden will be sworn in using the
Biden Family Bible, which is five inches thick, has a Celtic cross on
the cover and has been in the Biden family since 1893. He used it every
time he was sworn in as a US Senator and when he was sworn in as Vice
President in 2009. His son Beau used it when he was sworn in as
Delaware’s attorney general.
“For decades, the Vice President’s bible has been part of our country’s
history,” Kerrigan said. “It will continue to serve not just the Biden
family, but the American people as well.”
###