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Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg delivers the commencement address at the Alumni Exercises at Harvard's 366th commencement exercises on May 25, 2017 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. |
Facebook Founder
Mark Zuckerberg
After Abandoning Atheism,
Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg Reveals the Prayer He Sings to His Daughter
Every Night Before Bed
By Billy Hallowell
Facebook
founder Mark Zuckerberg stunned many last December when he posted an online
message that seemed to indicate that he had abandoned atheism.
And he
gave that discussion new life on Thursday when he revealed the prayer he sings
to his daughter every night before bedtime.
It was
during Zuckerberg’s commencement address at Harvard University that he
shared a Jewish prayer called the “Mi Shebeirach” — an invocation that he said he recites as he
copes with major challenges in life and also when he tucks his child
in at night, the Washington Post reported.
“Before you walk out those gates one
last time, as we sit in front of Memorial Church, I am reminded of a prayer,
‘Mi Shebeirach,’ that I say whenever I face a challenge, that I sing to my
daughter thinking about her future when I tuck her into bed,”
Zuckerberg told Harvard graduates as he closed out his address.
“It
goes: ‘May the source of strength, who blessed the ones before us, help us find
the courage to make our lives a blessing.’ I hope you find the courage to make
your life a blessing.”
The version of
the prayer that Zuckerberg shared was written by Jewish musician Debbie
Friedman; it is a rendition that is used today in many synagogues, with
the invocation being sung after the names of the ill are read aloud, according
to the Post.
While this was
the only moment that Zuckerberg mentioned themes pertaining to God and prayer,
he encouraged graduates to focus on the importance of “purpose,”
proclaiming that discovering one’s own purpose in life simply isn’t
enough.
“The challenge for our generation is
creating a world where everyone has a sense of purpose,”
Zuckerberg said.
“Purpose is that sense that we are
part of something bigger than ourselves, that we are needed, that we have
something better ahead to work for. Purpose is what creates true happiness.”
As Faithwire
previously reported, Zuckerberg made headlines in December when he posted a
message indicating that he had abandoned atheism.
The comment came
after someone posted on his page, asking if he’s an atheist.
“No, I was raised Jewish, and then I
went through a period where I questioned things,” he
said. “But now I believe religion is very
important.”
Billy Hallowell has been
working in journalism and media for more than a decade. His writings have
appeared in Deseret News, TheBlaze, Human Events, Mediaite and on FoxNews.com,
among other outlets. Hallowell has a B.A. in journalism and broadcasting from
the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, New York and an M.S. in social
research from Hunter College in Manhattan, New York.
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