Sr. Catherine Pinkerton to give closing prayer at DNC tonight

Sr. Catherine Pinkerton, an 86 year old nun who has worked as a lobbyist for the past 24 years, will be giving the closing prayer at the Democratic National Convention tonight, as noted on the America site.

From the Deacon's Bench:

"I think you have a different perspective when you've lived some history," says Catherine Pinkerton, a member of the Cleveland-based religious order Congregation of St. Joseph who once served as principal of the West Side secondary school it founded, St. Joseph Academy.

Pinkerton says that she has never been an activist for either political party but that she admires Barack Obama's "vision of where we stand as a nation and where we stand among nations" and agreed to deliver the benediction at the request of his campaign.

For the past 24 years, Pinkerton has worked for Network, a national Catholic social-justice lobby in Washington, D.C., where she works to establish international trade and investment policies that benefit the United States as well as the developing world.

"We are standing at one of the critical moments of our history," says Pinkerton, who is still drafting the remarks she'll deliver in Denver on Wednesday, Aug. 27.


[image description: Sr. Catherine Pinkerton is shown. She is wearing glasses, has gray hair and wears a turquoise scarf with a blue suit - and a big smile.]

Sasha, the microphone and Uncle Teddy

Early in the day yesterday, before the Democratic Convention began, Sasha Obama, her sister and her mother visited the stage and the podium. Seven year old Sasha amused the crew and press by picking up the gavel and banging it (photo at left). But that was nothing compared to what she did with the microphone almost eight hours later, when her daddy appeared via satellite on the big screen behind the stage after her mother's speech.

Sasha ran toward the screen, greeting her father. "Hi, Daddy....what city are you in?" she said. And when he asked her how she thought her mom did in her speech, Sasha replied that she was good.

It was really cute, but that's not what I was thinking about. What I noticed is that Michelle Obama let Sasha hold the microphone the entire time Barack was on screen. How many politicians would trust their own child rearing enough to do that? We all know how seven year olds can be.

But seven year old Sasha definitely could handle the limelight in a seven year old way.

Before that Caroline Kennedy introduced her Uncle Teddy in an impassioned speech.Ted Kennedy spoke about hope, saying

"This November the torch will be passed again to a new generation of Americans. So with Barack Obama, and for you, and for me, our country will be committed to his cause. The work begins anew, the hope rises again, and the dream lives on."

And so it seemed very appropriate not only that young Sasha got to hold the microphone to talk to her daddy, just like other nights when he calls home from trips, but that she was the first one to bang the gavel.