World In Prayer, April 17

It was my week to write the World In Prayer prayers. I started by looking at the lectionary, before even looking at the news. I thought I was going to focus on the gospel reading about the resurrection appearance, but the line that leapt out at me was from the Psalm, "Many are saying, 'Oh that we might see better times!'" followed up by a beautiful request. As you'll see, that seemed like a good refrain. At the same time, I wanted to note resurrection as an ongoing revelation of the Easter season.  Moving from bad news to signs of hope was another way of lifting up my own countenance to see resurrection at work in the world. 

Here they are:

Many are saying, "Oh, that we might see better times!" *
Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.
                                                                                    Psalm 4:6

In this season of resurrection, lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O Lord, that we may see your risen Son, Jesus Christ, who walks with us, even in our confusion and grief.

We pray for all whose lives have been affected by the Holocaust as the world bears witness on Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We pray for all migrants who have fled North Africa attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Italy, remembering especially those who have drowned, including the 400 who have died this week alone.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We pray for Yemen, where Al-Qaeda of the Arab Peninsula has taken over a major airport in Mukalla.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We pray for the United States where a history of slavery, racism, and oppression continues to reveal itself through deadly violence towards African Americans.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We pray for Colombia where rebels from Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia broke a recent cease-fire, killing 11 soldiers, and where aerial bombings are set to resume.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We give thanks for the 5,000 people in Durban, South Africa who marched to protest a spate of recent xenophobic attacks.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We give thanks for signs of peace between the U.S. and Cuba after more than 50 years of hostility.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

We give thanks for all who work for peace, for reconciliation, for restoration, for healing, for justice, and for hope.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD.

Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O LORD. In our homes. In our families. In our communities. In our countries. And in our world. Amen.

World In Prayer, February 13

It was my week to write the World in Prayer prayers. The top news stories were the peace accord hammered out in Ukraine, and the murder of three Muslim students in Chapel Hill, NC. But the story that struck me was that of a group of 6 prison inmates in Taiwan who had taken some prison guards hostage and, after a 14-hour stand-off, committed suicide. 

These were not nice people, it sounds like. And yet I felt very called to pray for them. Which then moved me to pray for other people that I would much rather not pray for. And I was reminded of the great commandments, and of Jesus' words, "I was in prison and you visited me," and "Whatever you do for the least of these, you have done for me." And that led me to these prayers.

As we prepare ourselves for the holy season of Lent, let us reflect in prayer on the words of our Lord Jesus Christ: that when we love the least of these, we love you, Lord.

Help us to love the least of these in prison. We pray for prisoners throughout the world. We pray that they may receive justice, that those who are innocent may be freed and those who are guilty may be restored and reconciled. We pray especially this week for Taiwan where 6 inmates held several guards hostage before committing suicide.

Help us to love the least of these who are refugees. We pray for the souls of the 300 migrants who drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean from Libya to Italy. We pray too for all those who tried to rescue them, as they have done so many times over the past months and years, and help them deal with the grief and horror of the tragedy. We pray for the children from Guatemala, El Salvador, and elsewhere, held in family detention camps in New Mexico, USA. We pray for all those who have been displaced from their homes.

Help us to love the least of those who seek peace. We give thanks for the ceasefire announced in Ukraine and pray that it may hold. We pray for Syria, Burkina Faso, Iraq, Afghanistan, and for countries affected by the Boko Haram insurgency, especially Nigeria, Cameroon, and Niger.

Help us to love the least of those of all faiths and tribes. We pray for Deah Shaddy Barakat, his wife Yusor Mohammad and her sister Razan who were killed this week in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA by their neighbor.

Help us, O Lord, to love our neighbors as You have commanded us to do. Help us to see in them the image of the living God who has come to dwell with us. And may we be transformed when we see You before us in the face of the least of these.

Amen.

Prayers for the new year

It was my turn this week to write the World In Prayer prayers. With my deadline on January 1, of course I was thinking about the new year. I realized how odd it is that we give this one arbitrary day such significance as a time of new beginnings since every day gives us that same opportunity, so I decided to write prayers that could actually be used at any time. I didn't refer to any specific world events, but certainly for me there was a lot of subtext in what I chose to focus on. But I wanted to leave them open enough for people to include whatever is on their own hearts and minds.

I fussed around quite a bit with which order to put the intercessions. It's not perfect, but then, they never are.

At any rate, here you go. 

World News This Week in Prayer

Gracious God, our lives are new every morning. Each day we are given opportunities to love you and to love the people you send to us. As we begin a new year, we use this moment to rededicate ourselves to your service and our gifts and talents towards creating your kingdom in this world.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

We rededicate ourselves to compassion: give us courage when we find ourselves encountering pain and suffering in others and in ourselves. Free us from judgment and self-righteousness and give us the gift of humility in all we do.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

We rededicate ourselves to reconciliation: let us ask for forgiveness of those we have hurt; help us, in your mercy, to do the hard work of forgiving those who have hurt us. Where there is division between individuals, races, or tribes, may we be bearers of light and understanding.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

We rededicate ourselves to hope: when we hear of wars that seem unending and see scars of conflict that run to the bone. In the face of natural disasters or calamities that we ourselves have made, inspire us with your hope to continue to seek your presence and your will.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

We rededicate ourselves to justice: to fighting against unfair and unequal laws and treatment, and to exposing systems that benefit those who have much and penalize those who have little. Give wisdom to those in authority in this and every land, and give us courage to hold our leaders accountable for their actions.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

We rededicate ourselves to peace: help us to respond to hatred with love, to anger with kindness. Fill us with your peace that we may share it wherever we go, that by our witness and our actions peace may fill the whole world.

Your kingdom come, O Lord.

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven, this day, this year, now and forever. All this we ask through the holy name of your son, Jesus Christ, who entered this world that the world may be saved. Through him we offer these prayers as we dedicate ourselves to you, today and always. Amen.

World In Prayer prayers

World in Prayer has a spiffy new website!

It was my week to write the prayers and I simply didn't have the time I would have liked to give to them. The salt of the earth, light of the world reading from the lectionary this morning was a natural jumping off point, but my reading of the news was more of a skim of the headlines. I found myself thinking, "Blah blah blah, Syria, Russia, drought. Isn't there anything new and interesting going on?" I feel like I didn't do justice to any of the things in the news, and so I am grateful to other people for holding the prayers for me this week.

The other piece I added was about how we can be salt and light in our local situations. With all my blah-de-blah attitude, one thing I pondered was how we need to be salt and light right where we are, and that there is so much that needs salt and light that will never make it in the papers. So I wanted to bring that out. 

But as I said, these prayers were quite rushed and I feel I didn't hit the mark I would have liked. Still...here they are.


World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, February 6, 2014

Jesus, you call us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. May we shine the light of your peace and love to its farthest corners as we remember your world in our prayers.

We pray for Russia as it hosts the Winter Olympics in Sochi, for the athletes who have come to compete, and for those displaced from their homes to make way for the sporting venues.

We pray for North Carolina (USA) where tons of coal ash spilled into the Dan River have affected the area’s drinking water.

We pray for Pakistan and the Taliban as they enter into peace talks.

We pray for Syria where the government has reached a deal allowing civilians to leave the besieged city of Homs.

We pray for the more than 1,100 African migrants rescued by the Italian navy, and for all those fleeing their home due to conflict or lack of resources.

We pray for California (USA) as it suffers from severe drought and for other parts of the US experiencing extreme cold, and for those affected by these conditions.

We pray for women throughout the world, especially for the women of Iraq, thousands of whom are detained illegally and subject to abuse.

And we pray for those needs close to home and close to our hearts.

We pray for those areas of pain and conflict that never reach the headlines and yet are still of immense importance to us and to you, O Lord.

We pray for strength and courage to be salt, to be light, to be peace, to be love to our neighbors here at home and to our neighbors throughout the world. Amen.

World In Prayer prayers

It was my week to write the prayers for the World In Prayer ministry, and of course Advent was on my mind. In particular, I took some of the O Antiphons as my inspiration this week, since they are prayers traditionally used in the week before Christmas.

The prayers are a bit bleak, I think, perhaps in keeping with the longest night of the year, but I tried to turn it at the end to the hope of new light.

At any rate, here you go.

World News This Week In Prayer - Thursday, December 19, 2013

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.
We are still waiting for you.
We are waiting for the Prince of Peace.
We are waiting for the Wisdom from on high.
We are waiting for the King of all nations.
O come and set the captives free.

Free those who are captive to violence.
--The people of Syria, of South Sudan, of Ukraine.
--The victims of domestic violence or abuse.
--Those who see violence as a solution to their problems or those of the world.

Free those who are captive to poverty.
--Those unable to find work, and those whose work cannot supply their needs.
--The long-term unemployed in the United States who may be affected by the expiration of their unemployment benefits.
--Those who work in sweatshops and mines.
--The children of New Zealand, over 1/4 of whom live in poverty, and children throughout the world who live in poverty.

Free those who are captive to fear and hatred.
--Those nations divided by histories of rivalry and conflict:
       Iran and Israel
       India and Pakistan
--The Roma of Europe.
--Those who fear others based on race or ethnicity.

Free those who are captive to sorrow.
--Those who grieve the loss of a loved one.
--Those who are alone.
--Those who suffer from depression.
--Those for whom this time of celebration is a time of sadness.

May you, O Lord, turn all our sorrow into joy. May our souls rejoice at your appearing. May we magnify you as we sing. And may all the world be glad at the light of your presence.

Come, Lord Jesus. Be our light in the darkness. And may we come before your presence with a song. For you are our light and our salvation, and to you we lift our voices in prayer and thanksgiving, now and always. Amen.

Thanksgivukkah Blessing

Having been advised that I would be giving the blessing at the annual Thanksgiving dinner, I actually stole something from the internet prepared in advance. This blessing, slightly edited, comes from the Clergy and Comedians Torah Roundtable, and doesn't that sound like a terrific group? I do like how as the prayer progresses, I'm lured into something deeper and less shticky. But any prayer that gives thanks for Mel Brooks is OK by me.

A THANKSGIVUKKAH BLESSING

O Great Spirit, Who in Infinite Wisdom has brought together Chanuka and Thanksgiving. Thank You for giving Christmas a break from the Jews.

As we dine in the light of a menorah on kosher turkey and on latkes with a shmear of cranberry sauce, we recall two great movements for religious freedom, American and Jewish, the combination of which yielded Groucho Marx, Joan Rivers, Mel Brooks, Gilda Radner, Jon Stewart, Jerry Seinfeld and Sarah Silverman.

May we be blessed with more religious freedom and less religious certainty. May we be less inclined to laugh at others, and more prone to laughing at ourselves. May our leaders learn from our modern prophets – speaking in clubs and old films, on HBO specials and Comedy Central shows – who unite us in our humanity, humility and vulnerability.

May our tears of laughter allow us to be open and unsure, and may God bless all of us, who are just muddling through, making meaning as we can. And may our descendants celebrate the next Thanksgivukkah, in 77,000 years, in a world of laughter and joy.

World In Prayer prayers

It was my week for the World In Prayer prayers. As you might have gathered from the silence of the blog (soon to be major motion picture), I have been kind of pressed for time these days, so the prayers are not as in depth as I would have liked. Heartfelt, nonetheless.

World News This Week in Prayer - Thursday, September 26, 2013

God of Heaven and Earth, Creator of all that is, seen and unseen, whom angels worship and adore, be merciful to us and hear us.

Lord Jesus Christ, who came to earth to be with us and share in our suffering, be merciful to us and hear us.

Holy Spirit, who dwells within us even now to inspire us, guide us, and strengthen us, be merciful to us and hear us.

Show your mercy to this small planet we call our home, and to all its creatures. 

Show your mercy to those killed or injured in the siege in the Westgate Shopping Center in Nairobi, Kenya; show your mercy to their families and friends. 

Show your mercy to the people of Pakistan where a massive earthquake hit the southwest region of Balochistan, and where a suicide bomb attack at a church in Peshawar killed 78 people and injured more than 100 others. 

Show your mercy to Colorado in the United States where people are trying to recover from massive flooding. Show your mercy to Mexico where storms have caused new flooding in Acupulco. 

Show your mercy to Syria where peace seems but a faint dream. 

Show your mercy to all who are refugees, all who are prisoners, all who are orphans. 

Show your mercy to all who are homeless or hungry or sick or in danger. 

Show mercy to those we love, and show mercy to our enemies.

Show us your mercy, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. We turn to you for help, O Lover of Souls. We pray that we may share your peace in the world even as we entrust this world into your care. O God, hear our prayer.

AMEN.

World In Prayer, July 12

It was my week for the World In Prayer prayers. Since this Sunday, the gospel is the story of the Good Samaritan, the theme of "who in the world in my neighbor?" was a pretty obvious choice. What I didn't expect, and noticed only after I'd written them, was that the theme of "help us actually see our neighbors" came up throughout the prayers -- part of my own personal theme of "you can't tell by looking" as well as the story element of the two who walked past.

Lord God, through your son Jesus you have called us to be a neighbor to all, and therefore to love all. Open our eyes to see our neighbors throughout the world.

• Our neighbors in Egypt during this time of political and social upheaval.
• Our neighbors in Nigeria where the rebel group Boko Haram attacked a secondary school in the state of Yobe killing at least 28 students and one teacher.
• Our neighbors in Quebec, Canada, where a train carrying oil derailed and exploded. We pray for the families of those who have died, and those still missing. 
• Our neighbors in California prisons (USA) as some 29,000 observe a hunger strike to protest solitary confinement practices.
• Our neighbors in Lebanon where a bomb in a Shiite suburb injured dozens of people.
• Our neighbors in China experiencing an early rainy season that has caused major flooding and landslides.
• Our neighbors in Turkey where police closed Gezi Park hours after it reopened as protesters began to gather.
• Our neighbors in Cuba adjusting to new policies of the government and Communist party. Including, Cuban citizens having full freedom to practice their faith.

May we be good neighbors to those of different faiths.

• May we be good neighbors to Buddhists. We pray for India where there have been a series of blasts at a Buddhist temple complex.
• May we be good neighbors to Jews as they observe Tish’a B’Av, a fast commemorating the destruction of the two temples on July 16.
• May we be good neighbors to Muslims in this season of Ramadan.

We give thanks to those who have shown us through their life and witness how to be a neighbor.

• We thank you for the witness of Malala Yousafzai, the young advocate for education shot by the Taliban a year ago, as she celebrates her 16th birthday on July 12 by presenting education policy recommendations at the UN.
• We thank you for the flight attendants on Asiana Airlines Flight 214 who helped 300 people evacuate the plane after it crash landed in San Francisco (USA).
• We thank you for Nelson Mandela and continue to pray for him as he remains hospitalized in critical condition.

We thank you for those who have been a neighbor to us in our needs.

O God, as we pray, help us not to be so caught up in the needs of the whole world that we neglect our neighbors who are here right now. Give us eyes to see them and hearts to respond with compassion and courage. All this we ask in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ who lived among us that we might see you in all people.

Amen.

Various & Sundry: from Hazardous Waste to Couture

So this morning I done did that fabulous thing that I do from time to time: I took all the old batteries and light bulbs and medicine and paint to the Household Hazardous Waste Disposal Center. I drove up and a man in a hazmat suit made me sign a form and then took the stuff away.

I write this in case you were not aware of the Household Hazardous Waste program in your community. Here's the link for the programs in the greater SF Bay Area, if you live in these parts. But do Google for what to do in your area. It feels good to be rid of that stuff.

Of course today I've also been following the news out of San Francisco after the Boeing 777 crashed at SFO. Listening to this recording of the Air Traffic Controllers before and after the crash is really impressive. They don't sound panicked, but boy does the pace of the directions pick up. And the pitch of the voice is a step higher. Come to think of it, maybe they do sound panicked. But they handle it magnificently. My prayers continue for all those affected.

For any native New Yorkers confused about what this means, this is like a plane crash in Queens, as is demonstrated by the handy map below:

The San Francisco Bay for New Yorkers infographic

This raised a question:

But where's Staten Island? RT “@neatorama: The San Francisco Bay for New Yorkers pic.twitter.com/7RgkXmfuDX”
— San Francisco (@sanfranmag) July 5, 2013

And an answer:

@sanfranmag @neatorama Staten Island is Alameda.
— Wanda (@itsWanda) July 5, 2013

So now you know.

There's a new stage production of Much Ado About Nothing I would love to see, with James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave as Benedick and Beatrice. Wouldn't that be something? It's at the Old Vic this September-November, so I'd say my chances are slim to nil, but it's wonderful to contemplate.

I loved this story about June Coleridge, a Bletchley Park codebreaker who just celebrated her 90th birthday.

[She] joined up aged 18 in 1940/1. She lived with an uncle who was building an aerodrome and learnt to fly during that time.

She said, however, that the work itself on the code breaking could be boring and her social life was limited.

She was also sent to Columbo in Sri Lanka as part of her intelligence work.

David Coleridge, one of June's three children, said: "I'm very proud of what she did there at Bletchley. Nobody knew until the later 1970s that anything had happened there, of course."

Yes, of course. Well, I'm glad they know now.

I'm still thinking about this comic Fat is Not a Feeling. Here's one panel of the larger piece:

I think there's more to be uncovered, here, but certainly this has got me cogitating.

Continuing in the "Life is complicated" department, this obit for Rena Price was actually a very difficult read. "Catalyst for the Watts Riot" is the subhead, which is...I don't know what it is, actually. Shorthand, I guess. Reading it, it's like one of those stories where you see the jar of explosive liquid about to tip over and you want to shout "Nooooo!" as the camera goes into slow motion and it's just too late. Is it the fault of the person who knocks over the jar? Or did it build up to that moment? Or was it inevitable? But that's how I read it. It's a history lesson I don't think we've learned. At all.

But let's end with something lovely, shall we? Like this Georges Hobeika Fall 2013 Couture Collection. Who is Georges Hobeika? I have no idea. But the dresses are sure pretty.

Enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend.

World in Prayer

It was my week to write the World In Prayer prayers. I hope I wasn't too preachy, here.


Holy Trinity, we understand so little
  about you
  about the world around us
  about our neighbors
  about ourselves.

We struggle to make sense of our experiences.
We do our best to make everything fit in the scheme of things,
to make you fit our understanding,
to make events follow some logic or plan.

Perhaps today we can offer to you our confusion as a gift,
the limits of our knowledge as our offering and our prayer.

All-knowing God, we lay before you the inexplicable sufferings of our world
in the hope that your love will give us comfort and the strength to comfort others.

We pray for Syria in its continued turmoil and conflict.

We pray for the victims of the tornado in Oklahoma, USA.

We pray for all refugees throughout the world, and for those who lose their homes through displacement, disaster, or loss.

We pray for Iran where the Guardian Council disqualified the presidential candidacy of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani ahead of Iran’s June elections.

We pray for those participating in the hunger strike on the base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and for those seeking a resolution to the issues that surround the prison there.

We pray for those who are sick, and for those suffering from diseases for which we have no cure or answer.

We pray for those working to contain the novel coronavirus, and for those affected by it in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and elsewhere.

We pray for the victims of random and unexpected violence.

We pray for Iraq where 70 people have been killed in bombings in recent days, and where 7 women and 5 men were shot dead in a brothel.

We pray for Mark Carson, shot in New York City, USA, by a man who shouted gay slurs at him.

We pray for a man killed in London, England, after being attacked by two men with machetes.

We pray for all those damaged by hatred. We pray for those who hate themselves or others.

We pray also that we may be aware of those moments of joy and grace that defy our understanding.

We pray that we may be alive to the wonder of your creation, and to the inspiration that it brings.

We thank you for the discovery of prehistoric cave paintings in Mexico.

We thank you for all those things that make us aware of the world and people around us.

In our struggle to understand, may we join with one another in love, remembering that you call us to faith, not certainty, and to compassion, not answers.

Holy Trinity, be our guide now and always. It is by you we pray.
Amen

World In Prayer

For more than five years now (hard to believe) I have been part of a team of people that writes weekly prayers from news of the world. This week was my week to write them. You can find the website here. 

World News This Week in Prayer -
Thursday, February 28, 2013

 O God, you are our God. Eagerly we seek you.

We look for signs of your presence in the midst of the troubles of this world. We look for answers and assurances. We realize that in our eagerness we may miss the very thing we seek. We sit in the wilderness of Lent and are tempted to leave for the promise of answers.

Help us and be with us and forgive us.

Forgive us when we do not notice your awesome presence as we continue our daily tasks.
Forgive us when we assign reasons and blame where none belongs.
Forgive us when in our impatience for answers we no longer remember the questions.

Enlighten our hearts, our minds, our spirits to see you in the midst of life and in one another.

 O God, you are our God. Eagerly we seek you throughout your world.

 We seek you in your church.

• We pray for the Roman Catholic Church as Pope Benedict XVI steps down and the church enters an uncertain future. 
• We pray for those observing the World Day of Prayer on March 1, that all may experience your gracious presence. 

 We seek you in places where there is conflict.

• We pray especially for places experiencing armed conflict: Mali, Syria, Darfur, Afghanistan, and others. 
• We pray for mineworkers in Colombia striking for better conditions and pay, and for workers at the Kusaselethu Mine in South Africa who are unhappy with union settlements. 
• We pray for homes where abuse and conflict divide and damage children and all family members. 

 We seek you in times of confusion.

• We pray for Italy as it experiences deadlock in creating a new coalition of leadership. 
• We pray for the United States as potential budget cuts may affect many lives in ways that are as yet unclear. 

 We seek you in sickness and in health.

• We pray for Brazil as they experience an increase in reports of Dengue Fever. 
• We pray for those suffering from malaria, and for those working for its eradication. 
• We pray for all those suffering from pain or illness. 

 We seek you in the world you have made.

• We pray for Australia where Cyclone Rusty has made landfall in the North West. 
• We pray for wisdom and humility as we examine our conflicting desire for sources of energy coupled with the desire to care for your creation. 

 We seek you day by day and through the night watches. We seek you in every tribe and nation, in heaven and on earth. Guide us in our seeking that we may find you and be found by you, through your son who dwelled among us, Jesus the Christ, who promised that those who seek shall find.

AMEN.

Unto Us a Boy is Born [Feast of the Holy Innocents]

It's the Feast of the Holy Innocents today, which has a lot more resonance this year for me. This is the hymn that came to my mind shortly after the Newtown massacre for its verse about Herod -- "all the little boys he killed" -- what a horrible, horrible story.

And there's a strange thing going on in this story I hadn't thought about before: about how other people suffered when Jesus came into the world. Other innocent people. I don't have much more than that; it's something I'll need to ponder.

Here's the collect for today, which I think is powerful stuff:

We remember today, O God, the slaughter of the holy innocents of Bethlehem by King Herod. Receive, we pray, into the arms of your mercy all innocent victims; and by your great might frustrate the designs of evil tyrants and establish your rule of justice, love, and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

No subtitles today. This hymn isn't among Christmas' greatest hits. It is strange to be reminded of grief at Christmas, but important. The grief is there; burying it under layers of Christmas cheer is not to our benefit, I feel.

Unto us a boy is born!
The King of all creation,
came he to a world forlorn,
the Lord of every nation.

Cradled in a stall was he
with sleepy cows and asses;
but the very beasts could see
that he all men surpasses.

Herod then with fear was filled;
"A prince," he said, "in Jewry!"
All the little boys he killed
at Bethlehem in his fury.

Now may Mary's son, who came
so long ago to love us,
lead us all with hearts aflame
unto the joys above us.

World in Prayer prayers

It was my week to write the prayers for World In Prayer, and of course Advent set the tone. Two other things colored these prayers: first, I did a service at a rehab facility -- 7 elderly women in wheelchairs and one aide -- and I realized how often in church I hear us urging people to go out and do when there are times when it is appropriate simply to sit and receive. And to follow that up, Internet Monk had a great post this week entitled Tis Easier to Give than Receive that I thought was lovely and so true. I was also reminded of T.S. Eliot's poem Ash Wednesday in which he writes "Teach us to care and not to care/teach us to sit still".

So that's where these prayers came from.

Here you go.

Perhaps we do not need to do any more. Perhaps we need to learn to wait. Perhaps we need to sit in silence, listening, without an answer at the ready, without the need to spring into action.

Perhaps we need to welcome Advent once again, O Lord, as the antidote for all our striving, as a time when we leave the world to your care.

O God, if you want us to act, we will act. But if in this season, you want us to wait, to watch, to listen, then we will wait, we will watch, we will listen.

As we pray for the world, may we sit still in your presence, waiting for your guidance, and watching for your return.

We pray for those who cannot worship in quiet and safety:

• for Iraq where a string of bombings, including one at the Imam Abbas Shrine in Karbala, have killed 45 and left another 155 wounded. 
• for Nigeria where at least 11 people were killed when a car bomb was detonated at a Protestant Church inside a military barracks and where continued fighting between Nigerian security forces and the Islamist group Boko Haram have forced thousands to flee their homes. 
• for Zimbabwe where some Anglicans trying to enter the cathedral in Harare have been chased by thugs and beaten with chains. We give thanks that the worshipers were able to enter and hold services there. 

We pray for those living in areas of conflict or struggles for power:

• for Syria where internet access has been shut down and battles between Syrian rebel forces and government troops have closed the main road leading to the Damascus Airport. 
• for the Democratic Republic of Congo where rebels have started withdrawing from territory they captured from government troops. 
• for Mali and for those seeking a peaceful solution to the end of months of fighting there. 
• for Egypt where the National Assembly is voting on a draft constitution, and where people are protesting the actions of President Morsi who claimed extra powers for his office. 

We pray for those who are sick.

• As we mark World AIDS Day on December 1st, we pray for all those who are affected by AIDS.
• We pray for Russia where there has been a 12 percent rise in the rate of AIDS this year. 

We pray for those working for peace: 

• for the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs and the Latin American Council of Churches as they meet this weekend in Antigua, Guatemala to address issues of peace and security in Latin America. 

We pray for our communities and neighbors, for our families and friends, for those who are near to us. 

May we wait and watch and listen with them, and with all the world, rejoicing in your return and in your never-ending love for all of your creation. Amen.

Prayers

I found this in the Interpreter's Bible when I was prepping for the sermon on Mark 13. It's from the Book of Common Prayer, I assume the 1928 book, since I didn't know it at all. I thought it was lovely and wanted to share it.

Eternal God, who committest to us the swift and solemn trust of life; since we do not know what a day may bring forth, but only that the hour for serving thee is always present, may we wake to the instant claims of thy holy will, not waiting for tomorrow, but yielding today.

As I tried to find the exact source of that prayer, I found the Pastor's Prayer Book from 1960, which includes this fabulous prayer For a Committee:

Bless, we beseech thee, O God, the work of this committee; grant to its members clarity of thought, evenness of temper, and willingness to persevere in thy service; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

That's a keeper.

Obit du jour: Dr. Ruth Etchells

Let us take a moment to celebrate the life of the remarkable Dr. Ruth Etchells, former Principal of St. John's College with Cranmer Hall, Durham. Take it away, Telegraph:

A kind, humane person, she was endowed with considerable pastoral skill and as capable of setting a shy student at ease as she was in dealing with a bishop. A special gift for friendship widely extended her influence.

These gifts were no less valuable when she became Principal of St John’s. Women had still to be admitted to the college, and the male ordinands were unaccustomed to having a woman as their head; she soon won their confidence. Another five years would pass before women could be ordained to the priesthood, but admission to the diaconate became possible in 1987 and candidates for this office were admitted for training. She spoke powerfully in the 1992 General Synod debate when the admission of women to the priesthood was authorised.

The obit in the Guardian calls her "the best female bishop we never had."

It would be nice if the Church of England could take its head out of its collective ass--oh, excuse me, "arse"--so it could actually have some of these women bishops instead of eulogizing them once they're dead.

Although I have to think she was probably better off never needing to wear the purple.

Still, the principal of a college has got to have a high degree of tolerance for bureaucratic indifference and administrative tedium. And it would have been wonderful if she'd had the friggin' option!

Deep breath.

In calmer news, I love that she called ordinands "my lambs."

I'll have to check out some of her books. She wrote several books of prayers along with her scholarship. This is the only prayer of hers I could find in a Google search:

Father of all…, make the roof of my house wide enough for all opinions, oil the door of my house so it opens easily to friend and stranger, and set such a table in my house that my whole family may speak kindly and freely around it.

Amen.

World in Prayer, August 16

It was my week to write the World in Prayer prayers, and the news seemed particularly rife with violence. I wanted to acknowledge that while also recognizing that violence is not limited to death and mayhem, but also occurs through mudslinging and garden variety cruelty. And as you see this week's news led to my more fervent prayers for peace.


Prince of Peace: fill our hearts, fill our minds, fill our souls.
Strengthen us for your service that we might be instruments of your peace in our world.

May there be peace to those who are far off and peace to those who are near.

• For the victims of bombs in Iraq, drug violence in Mexico, and shootings in Texas, Louisiana, and Washington, DC (USA), may there be peace. 
• For protesters in South Africa, rioters in France, and those in India fleeing their homes for fear of violence, may there be peace. 
• For Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and places of deep conflict, may there be peace. 
• For the 11 people whose murder remains a mystery in Kazakhstan, and for two Brazilian prisoners lynched in Bolivia, may there be peace.  
• For those seeking public office and the partisans who support them, may there be peace. 
• For Sikhs, Muslims, Jews, Christians, and those of every faith and creed, may there be peace. 
• In our families, schools, neighborhoods, and churches, may there be peace. 

May there be everlasting peace.
May there be deep and wide peace.
May there be reconciling and humble peace.
Lord, we pray, may there be your peace.

Help us, gracious God, to seek peace and pursue it,
To bring peace wherever we may be,
To share peace with the fearful and the angry,
And continually to pray for peace in our time, O Lord.

All this we ask through your Son who came to bring peace to the world you sustain with your love. Amen.

World In Prayer, May 3, 2012

It was my week for the World In Prayer prayers and they pretty much wrote themselves this week.  Once I hit that line in the Acts reading for this Sunday, I knew exactly how I wanted to pray. These prayers are from my heart.  Here they are.

Philip asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?" 

He replied, "How can I, unless someone guides me?"   -Acts 8:30-31

Dear God,

I do not understand what I am reading.

I read news from throughout the world and I do not understand what I am reading.

I say I read “news,” but the truth is; I read headlines, sometimes a few paragraphs, sometimes a whole article. I get glimpses into conflicts and cultures and circumstances, but I do not understand what I am reading. How can I understand, unless someone guides me?

Help us, God, to listen to those whose experience informs them. Help us to listen to others throughout the world, to those who have lived in the conflict and the culture and the circumstances. Help us to gain perspective. Help us to have insight. Help us to understand.

Help us to understand what is happening in Mali where a recent coup and counter-coup are being discussed by leaders of West African States at a meeting in Senegal.

Help us to understand what is happening in France where voters will decide on Sunday between current President Nicholas Sarkozy and challenger Francois Hollande.

Help us to understand what is happening in Burma where Daw Aung Yan Suu Kyi and other recently elected members of the National League for Democracy took their seats in Parliament.

Help us to understand what is happening in Brazil where more than 8,500 troops have been deployed in the Amazon to tackle drug trafficking, logging, and illegal mining.

Help us to understand what is happening in Nigeria where gunmen armed with explosives set fire to a cattle market, burning it to the ground, killing over 30 people as well as many of the cattle.

Help us to understand what is happening in Serbia where presidential and Parliamentary elections on Sunday may decide whether or not the country joins the European Union.

Help us to understand what is happening in China where the United Statesand China are in conflict over the future of dissident lawyer Chen Guangchen, who is seeking to travel to the United States after escaping house arrest.

Help us to understand what is happening in Syria where security forces have stormed student dormitories in Aleppo in response to anti-government protests.

Help us to understand the world you made, the world you love, the world you redeemed.

Help us to understand. Help us to abide in you. Help us to love. Amen

World In Prayer prayers

As I mentioned in the post below, this was my week to write the World in Prayer prayers.  As it happens, it seems as though the only news story I didn't include was the story about Pope Benedict in Cuba.  


The Palm Sunday connection gave a great framework for writing these, for which I'm grateful.  I'm a little worried that it got rather pro-democracy-heavy in the middle, there.  But I'm pleased with the ending.


World News This Week in Prayer

Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace on earth and in the highest heaven.

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

We greet Jesus who enters boldly into our world, as we call out:

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We lay before Jesus the pain and suffering of this world. We pray for those who seek peace and those who face war; for those who need healing and those who are ill; for those who provide for us and those in need. We lay our concerns and burdens down before Jesus as we remember the world in prayer.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for Spain where union workers called for a general strike to protest government labor reforms. On Thursday, 58 people were detained and 9 injured in confrontations between protesters and police.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for Kenya where the discovery of a major oil deposit creates hope for new wealth and fear of exploitation. We pray for Sudan and South Sudan as the African Union works to prevent renewed skirmishes over oil fields near their borders.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for the United States where the Supreme Court held hearings on the nation's new health care law and will determine its constitutionality. We pray for all those who are without access to health care.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for the Middle East as the Arab League Summit meets in Iraq. We pray for Syria where continued violence confounds the United Nation's plan for peace.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for Senegal where incumbent President Abdoulaye Wade conceded defeat to opposition candidate Mackey Sall in a peaceful run-off election. And we pray for Mali where a recent coup has created confusion.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for Myanmar where elections will be held on April 1. We pray for Aung San Suu Kyi, running for a seat in Parliament, who has suspended her campaign after falling ill.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for Afghanistan where Taliban fighters have attacked a NATO supply convoy and 37 people were reported killed. We pray for women in Afghanistan imprisoned for so-called "moral crimes" such as running away from an abusive marriage. We pray for those seeking their release.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for refugees and those who seek refuge. We pray for the over 400,000 people who sought asylum in 2011 as they fled their homelands of Afghanistan, China, Iraq, and elsewhere; and we pray for South Africa, the United States, and other nations that receive their requests for assistance.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We pray for those whose labor helps us live. We pray for farm workers as the United States marks the second annual Cesar Chavez Day on March 31. We give thanks for the pioneers of the Farm Worker Movement who were inducted into U.S. Department of Labor Hall of Fame this week.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

We give thanks for the wonders of the universe and acknowledge our place in it. We gaze with awe at a new photograph of the Milky Way, revealing the details of a billion stars. And we pray for our environment as scientists discover that commonly used pesticides have severely impacted the bee population.

Hosanna, Lord. Help us, we pray.

Help us, O Lord, to walk in your steps, to follow your way, to teach with your wisdom, to speak with your courage, to love with your compassion, and to be faithful to the end. We follow you on this way of the cross as we hope to join with you in your glorious resurrection.
Amen.

Invisible rewards

Cross-posted at the Confirm not Conform website.

One of the things that I think all of us hope for when we prepare people for confirmation is that they have a rewarding experience. I was thinking of this today, hearing the familiar Ash Wednesday reading from the Sermon on the Mount: "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven." And then Jesus goes on to list all the ways that going through the motions--of almsgiving, of prayer, of fasting--are not the reward we are after. The reward that really counts is what "your Father who sees in secret" sees.

To me that suggests the mysterious process of what goes on inside is of far more value than the things we see people do--a process that may not even be perceived by the people going through them, much less those of us watching.

I found this a little depressing. I know I get so much out of it when I see someone get it, when I see the excitement or joy or insight. But I realized today that to try to force those things is to satisfy my needs and desires, that I may be looking for the reaction in order to receive my reward. When we watch youth or adults with an eye to making sure they exhibit the transformation we hope they experience, are we leading them into the temptation to give alms ostentatiously, or pray long and loud, or fast dismally? Do we need to let it go, understanding we may never see the reward?

The truth is, I may never know if someone finds a class or a sermon or a retreat rewarding in the long run. I may never know if Confirmation meant anything to them. Though I want people to be inspired, I may only see someone blase, bored, and disengaged. And when I think I've offered something awesome, that gets frustrating. But people don't owe me their life-changing experiences; no one needs to make me feel better about myself by saying how Confirm not Conform (for example) was the Best Thing Ever. I need to remember that I too depend upon God for my reward, and that the reward that lasts doesn't consist in the number of people who Like What I Do.

God, help me to seek my reward only from you, and not from the behavior or approval of others. May my reward be to love and serve you and those you love, now and always. Amen.

And a blessed Lent to one and all.

Various & Sundry, January 27

I think my favorite obituary of the week was for ChiChi, "Perhaps World's Oldest Dog," who died at the age of  26? 25? No one really knows.  Poignant, though. “'We just feel completely empty; the whole apartment’s empty,' Mr. Pavich, 38, said in an interview. 'That little 10-pound guy fills up not just your apartment, but your life.'" Aww.

Also this week, I was very sad to see that organist Gerre Hancock died.  He was a master of improvisation, as you will hear if you listen to the improv at the end of this post. "When asked about the difference between sacred and popular music, Hancock replied: 'It's all sacred as far as I'm concerned. Some works better in nightclubs than in churches, but anything beautiful is sacred.' A fitting epitaph, and by that measure, he gave the world a vast treasure of sacred music." Amen.

 Liturgy geeks, take note! Jonathan Hagger, aka MadPriest, has started a new venture, offering New Words for Holy Communion, a monthly, downloadable resource providing prayers, intercessions, acclamations, biddings and blessings for use in the eucharistic services of the church. He does very good work, and I can imagine this being an excellent resource.

Ta-Nehisi Coates has done an amazing series of posts this week confronting some "comfortable history" about the Civil War.  They are long, but well worth reading. Part I addresses the situation facing Lincoln when he took office; Part II speaks of the economics of slavery; Part III compares the American Civil War with the end of slavery in other nations.

Part I ends very powerfully this way:

I have come to a fairly recent regard for Lincoln. He rose from utter frontier poverty, through self-education and hard work, to the presidency and the upper reaches of American letters. His path was harsh. His wife was mentally ill. His son died in office. He was derided in newspapers as ugly, stupid, a gorilla and white trash. For his patience, endurance, temperance and industry in the face of so many troubles, Lincoln was awarded a shot to the head.

Now in some sectors of the country for which Lincoln died, patriotism means waving the flag of his murderer. The party he founded supports this odious flag-waving and now gives us a candidate who would stand before that same flag and peddle comfortable fictions. What hope is there when those who talk of patriotism brandish the talisman of bloody treason?

The matter falls to you. Don't conned. Don't be a mark. Live uncomfortable.