Recognizing the Hand of God in This Terrible Visitation

Today's entry is a portion (one of the whereas clauses) of Abraham Lincoln's Proclamation of August 12, 1861 appointing the last Thursday in September as a day of humiliation, prayer and fasting for all the people of the nation."   A strong statement for extraordinary times. . ..

 And whereas, when our own beloved Country, once, by the blessing of God, united, prosperous and happy, is now afflicted with faction and civil war, it is peculiarly fit for us to recognize the hand of God in this terrible visitation, and in sorrowful remembrance of our own faults and crimes as a nation and as individuals, to humble ourselves before Him, and to pray for His mercy, -- to pray that we may be spared further punishment, though most justly deserved; that our arms may be blessed and made effectual for the re-establishment of law, order and peace, throughout the wide extent of our country; and that the inestimable boon of civil and religious liberty, earned under His guidance and blessing, by the labors and sufferings of our fathers, may be restored in all its original excellence: --

Abraham Lincoln from the Library of Congress Colleciton