So now there's also a "post-inaugural prayer service at National Cathedral"...

[MADem]

123. Well, the invocation was tied to the Civil Rights Movement and MLK.

The opening prayer was done by (the murdered) Medgar Ever's widow--and she is NOT a particularly religious person. She isn't fussy about what church she attends, she switches it up. She is not a minister, a pastor--any of that. She's just a civilian who sits in a pew on occasion but who does not preach from a pulpit. An activist--she worked to get justice for her husband for over thirty years. Gutsy.

Her selection was appropriate to the day and the man being re-inaugurated. She is an icon and a link to those dark days when MLK and others were in the thick of the battle. I understand that Obama personally chose her, too, so there is that aspect. She was also the FIRST woman, and the FIRST "non clergy" to deliver a prayer at an inaugural. Those are two "inclusive" blocks to check, as well.

The guy who did the benediction was a fast substitute for another guy (Louie Giglio, who had a reputation for fighting against human trafficking) with bigoted tendencies towards gays who was on the marquee to provide a bit of sop to the right ,I suspect, but he got some bad press (deservedly--he had antigay bias that was not well known outside his little circle, I guess) and a substitute was called up. The substitute was of Latin heritage, a Cuban refugee, one of the (early days) "Pedro Pan" kids sent out of Cuba to be fostered away from their parents, in fact, named Luis Leon, who was an Episcopalian pastor from St John's (the Church of Presidents) who performs same-sex marriages.

I think those elements played into that selection--the guy was a three-fer (or more) in terms of inclusion. I doubt POTUS could have found an imam or rabbi or any other religious leader with a resume appropriate to MLK or immigration (with a gay marriage bonus) that "fit the bill" so well.