Praying at the pumps

Gasoline prices may rise and fall, but what remains constant is the desire, in the face of now-permanent triple-digit prices, to fall to your knees in frustration. But if most gasoline consumers are bowing down in defeat, at least one American group has a slightly different take on finding themselves prostrated by gas prices: prayer.

Called, simply enough, Pray at the Pump, the group of 50 Evangelical Christians believe, as their leader, Rocky Twyman, does, that prayer is literally the answer to all problems. Sporting a signature purple shirt, Twyman and his group meet regularly in front of gas stations, even providing a modified version of the iconic civil rights anthem “We Shall Overcome” featuring the new verse “”We’ll have lower gas prices.”

According to the National Post article linked above, the group began at a Washington, D. C. where, after hearing the other soup kitchen volunteers complaining about the cost of gas, Mr. Twyman led them across the street to a Shell station to pray. The group’s visits have included stations around the United States, and they’ve even taken their crusade online with a petition.

So far their public call to “Pray Down the High Gas Prices” has only attracted 54 signatures agreeing that “Negotiations with rich Arabs have failed to end the high gas prices in America,” but the group has already attracted considerable attention online and even from comedian Jay Leno.

In fact, the famous late night host is now a subject of protest for the group after he quipped: “Hey, have you heard about this group called Prayer at the Pump? They’re a prayer group that sprang up, and they go to gas stations and they hold hands and they pray for lower gas prices. Otherwise known as the Bush energy plan.”