National Bible Week

Floor Speech

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Mrs. RODGERS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Lamborn for bringing us all together tonight.

The Bible is a book that has endured for generations. Around the world, it is the number one bestseller. For 6,000 years of history, it is the Bible that has shaped who we are, how we govern, and our laws, morality, education, and family values.

The Bible has influenced the greatest philosophers, scholars, artists, musicians, and scientific work and discoveries.

The Bible answers questions like: Who am I? What makes me human? What is the purpose of life?

At a time when we are divided, angry, and fearful--the Surgeon General says we have a public health crisis of loneliness and isolation driving record suicides, deaths of despair, divorce, substance abuse, depression, and anxiety--perhaps more of us should read the Bible.

In 1863, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed: ``We have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.''

In 2023, have we forgotten God? How about doing something new in 2024? How about reading the Bible, all 435 Members of the House of Representatives? With our family and friends, it is only 15 minutes a day. We can read through the old book together for wisdom, like in Proverbs to ``trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.''

God is with us in everything that we do. May we discover the truth and freedom of His ways as revealed in the sacred Scripture.

Together, with His abundant grace, we can bring hope and healing to our land.

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