Email 1
First Principles Press (FPP) is delighted to announce the publication of the first edition of
“Endowed by Their Creator”: A Collection of Historic American Military Prayers 1774-Present.
Significant and equally important, the beginning stage of distribution of the prayer collection is
now underway.
FPP’s mission is to teach American leaders about our military organization including the
military’s second founding principle – daily prayer to the end that we might be useful in
ultimately restoring leader and chaplain led prayer in America’s military.
The “military necessity” of prayer in America’s military is well established since our
founding, and embodies the fundamental elements determined by centuries of military
leadership, as being crucial to the dangerous mission of fighting and winning America’s wars.
This collection makes the case that historically, military leadership has known and understood
troop “morale” is linked to understanding and possessing personal morals embodied in the first
principle of the American military, “Exemplary Conduct” and supported by the second
principle, leader-led military prayer.
“I look upon the spiritual life of the soldier as even more important than his physical
equipment. The soldier’s heart, the soldier’s spirit, the soldier’s soul sustains him; if not
he cannot be relied upon and he will fail himself, his commander, and his country in the
end. It’s morale and I mean spiritual morale, which wins the victory ultimately. And that
type of morale can only come out of a soldier who knows God and who has the spirit of
religious fervor in his soul.” - General George C. Marshall
FPP’s distribution method requires reaching “force multipliers”, that is military leaders,
leadership in civil government at the local, state and national level, veterans groups, military
chaplains, and influential pastors for distribution to their spheres of influence and their church
memberships. Please consider forwarding this email onto your own network of people. If you
are interested in helping to get the word out about “Endowed by Their Creator” email
firstprinciplepress@gmail.com
Visit http://firstprinciplespress.org/newsite/military-prayer-collection/ to read background
materials and for information on how to order books.
Email 2
Recently I emailed you about a book “Endowed by Their Creator”: A Collection of
Historic American Military Prayers 1774-Present. “Endowed by Their Creator” is not simply a
historic prayer book, but rather a historic and legal case for military prayer to defend the Right to
Pray of troops, leaders and chaplains through veteran’s groups, military leadership, civilian
leadership and church leadership.
While pastors have long known of the necessity of prevailing prayer to the Kingdom “on
Earth” as it is “in Heaven,” likewise admirals and generals have understood the necessity of
prayer to the military mission. Why? America is a “Christian Nation”. The supreme Court
confirmed this in four separate court cases, and on average 70 percent of America’s population
self identify as “Christians”. Yet, today the Department of Defense prohibits leader-led prayer
and Christian chaplains are finding it more difficult to pray in the name of Jesus Christ.
David Barton is the Founder and President of WallBuilders, a national pro-family
organization that presents America's forgotten history and heroes, with an emphasis on our
moral, religious and constitutional heritage. He informs us that specifically, Christianity is being
removed and/or discouraged by the nation’s leaders: “In June 2011, the Department of Veterans
Affairs forbade references to God and Jesus during burial ceremonies at Houston National
Cemetery.1 In September 2011, The Army issued guidelines for Walter Reed Medical Center
stipulating that “No religious items (i.e. Bibles, reading materials and/or facts) are allowed to be
given away or used during a visit.”2 In November 2011, President Franklin Roosevelt’s famous
D-Day Prayer was opposed from inclusion on the WWII Memorial in Washington, DC.3 In
December 2011, the Obama administration denigrated other countries' religious beliefs as an
obstacle to radical homosexual rights.4”
As long as the Declaration of Independence stands, the case for prayer in “Endowed by
their Creator” will stand. This historical case for prayer and the accompanying collection of
historic military prayers is presented as hundreds of years of evidence for the necessity of leaderled and chaplain led prayer in America’s Armed Forces. Our sincere hope is that historic
military prayers will continue to preserve the character of America, providing “liberty and justice
for all” and peace and prosperity in our sweet land of the free and home of the brave.
If you are interested in supporting First Principles Press and the case for military prayer
email firstprinciplespress@gmail.com. Visit http://firstprinciplespress.org/newsite/militaryprayer-collection/ to read background materials and for information on how to order books.
Email 3
Many young people, the up and coming leaders of this country, are ignorant of the long
history of prayer and its vital role in equipping the nation’s fighting forces as they defend
America’s way of life.
The deviation from America’s Christian and Biblical foundations has been a deliberate,
yet long path. The Army Lawyer, November 1998, stated:
“Houston Veterans Claim Censorship of Prayers, Including Ban of ‘God’ and ‘Jesus’,” Fox News, June 29, 2011.
"Wounded, Ill, and Injured Partners in Care Guidelines," Department of the Navy (accessed on February 29, 2012).
3
Todd Starns, “Obama Administration Opposes FDR Prayer at WWII Memorial,” Fox News, November 4, 2011.
4
Hillary Rodham Clinton, “Remarks in Recognition of International Human Rights Day,” U.S. Department of State,
December 6, 2011.
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Prayers at ceremonies should be relatively short and non-denominational. These prayers
should not reference divinity by any sectarian name (Jesus, Allah) but rather use
“generic” terms (Father, Almighty, Source of Goodness).
Commanders should let chaplains give invocations and benedictions. Chaplains are the
experts and are the most likely to use the appropriate language. In addition, a soldier is
less likely to feel ‘pressured’ by a chaplain than by a line officer who is giving a prayer.
If an event is not large enough to merit attendance of a chaplain (for example, a staff
meeting), then a prayer is probably not appropriate.5
America has arrived at a time when our national leadership seeks to herd us often
unwillingly into new paths leaving the “old paths” to the very destruction and reforming of the
nation’s Christian foundation. First Principles Press has determined, as the military’s moral
boundaries are now completely breached—women sharing barracks with men and homosexuality
among those serving—that the case for military prayer remains an indispensible guide in these
morally tumultuous times.
Please consider sharing this email with your own network of people to spread the word
about preserving military prayer. If you are interested in supporting First Principles Press and
joining the case for military prayer, email them at firstprinciplespress@gmail.com. Visit
http://firstprinciplespress.org/newsite/military-prayer-collection/ to read background materials
and for information on how to order books.
Email 4
We have a large challenge before us to overcome the forces and organizations trying to
eliminate prayer from America’s Armed Forces. Yet, we serve a great God and we know that as
a combined front, “Endowed by Their Creator” can have a far reaching impact. We are
encouraging you to contact others that you know and to personally consider supporting this
effort. Here’s how:

Purchase copies in bulk for distribution amongst your family, friends and
influential contacts. Visit http://firstprinciplespress.org/newsite/military-prayercollection-resources/ to read background materials and for information on how to
order books.

Join with First Principles and use your email network(s) to get the word out about
the case for military prayer and “Endowed by Their Creator”.
“The Army Lawyer (ISSN 0364-1287) is published by the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center & School
(JAGS), U.S. Army, Charlottesville, Virginia….It is intended primarily ‘for the official use of Army lawyers in the
performance of their legal responsibilities.’” <http://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/Military_Law/Army_Lawyer.html>
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
Talk to your pastor about using the history of American military prayer and the
“Military Necessity” of military prayer in a sermon for Independence Day or
Veterans Day.

Watch a 7-minute video available on the website explaining the history and
crucial importance of military prayer, and share it with others.
http://vimeo.com/38927865

Donate to First Principles to make books available to those who are unable to
purchase them, and to allow First Principles to put “Endowed by Their Creator”
in the hands of soldiers across the globe.
We must not surrender this vital aspect of the American soldier’s equipment—his/her
spiritual equipment. Join with us in making the crucial case for military prayer as we seek to
reach all of America’s fighting forces, lest they forget or never know of the vital role prayer has
held in our national heart. Let’s not leave America’s fight forces without a prayer.