On D-Day, June 6, 1944, President Franklin Roosevelt delivered a prayer to the nation at 9:57PM ET. It would last 6 minutes long, and be heard by over 100 million Americans—and millions more in Europe. Written with help from his daughter and his daughter’s husband, it was the largest mass prayer in American (and world) history.
Here is a ten-minute story about FDR’s prayer.
I love to hear Lee Habib’s voice telling such stories!
Oh, Dennis, so do I! He is such a treasure.
Thank you, Joy. I will never NOT love that speech…especially the prayerful ending and Roosevelt’s wisdom about the threat of “racial arrogance”. I get tears every time – a mix of admiration about love and loss with hope for the future. Sacrifices of so many…we can never forget. 💕
Thank you, Vicki!
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I wasn’t aware of this before. Thank you, Joy.
It was new to me as well. I appreciate Our American Stories with Lee Habeeb because it reminds us about where we’ve come from, and some fun stories too. (They just asked me to record one or two more for them!)
Great. Have fun telling your stories, Joy
Each time I hear FDR’s speech, I immediately place myself in the shoes of people like your grandparents, huddled around the radio, listening to each prayerful word, hoping they will see their sons come home. There are certain days in history we should never forget. This is one of them.
Oh, you are so right. At the end of the war, when they listened for the names of those coming home from the POW camps. What tension they must have felt.
Thank you for posting this incredibly moving prayer. It brought tears to my eyes. Today has been a solemn day of remembrance online. And rightly so.
Roosevelt’s prayer was new to me. I’ve appreciated all the compelling memories and posts from Europe today.
God Bless us, everyone
Amen, Annette.
A praying president is good for this country.
It certainly is, Tim!
I didn’t know about this. Thanks for the share
I also shared your new book in today’s post!
This part of FDR’s prayer stood out: “They fight to end conquest. They fight to liberate. They fight to let justice arise, and tolerance and good will among all Thy people. They yearn but for the end of battle, for their return to the haven of home.” Let’s continue to pray that we don’t unravel what they accomplished. Thanks for sharing this prayer, Joy.
You are so right, Nancy. Thank you.