People's Prayers

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Meditation Moment: in Eastertide ~ Thursday, Week 5 '23

The deeper our faith, the more doubt we must endure; the deeper our hope, the more prone we are to despair; the deeper our love, the more pain its loss will bring: these are a few of the paradoxes we must hold as human beings. If we refuse to hold them in the hopes of living without doubt, despair, and pain, we also find ourselves living without faith, hope, and love.

~ Parker J. Palmer*

Dear God ~ It seems counter-intuitive to me that the deeper my faith and hope and love becomes the crazier that life can get. But in truth, that has been my experience. Things can get all tangled up so that the dark nights can burn through the bright sunlight but then the bright sunlight can also shine through the darkness. Sometimes I've tried to hide in a quiet space away from fear, and pain, and hopelessness, and then discovered my quiet space was just empty. Guide me, my Lord, through all of my momentary and long-term trepidations. When I remember that You are always here, I’m better able to navigate the twists and the turns, the light and the dark, the highs and the lows of all that the life You have given me has to offer. amen.

*Parker J. Palmer [1939 - ] is an educator, activist, poet, and prolific author on issues in education, community, social change, and spirituality. A member of the Religious Society of Friends, he has said that doubt is not the opposite of faith, but it is fear; we are afraid to be disillusioned. He also says that "before you can have a spiritual life, you must have a life." It is in a blending of our active and contemplative life that our sense of spirituality finds a balance. The recipient of many distinguished awards, Dr. Palmer lives with his wife in Madison, Wisconsin.

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Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Meditation Moment in Eastertide: Wednesday, Week 5 '23

― Gibran Khalil Gibran*

Dear Creator of Darkness and Light:
A positive spin on life has never come easily to me. It's so much easier to feel victimized, to wallow in the drama, to point the finger of blame and fault at others when life has failed to meet my desires. I've lived in the THEY-can't-possibly-understand-or-take-the-time-to-care-about-what-I'VE-endured- self-involvement. And it wasn't until I was so depleted emotionally, that with nowhere else to go, I finally and desperately turned to YOU. When that happened I heard the Voice that had always been there. I felt the Touch that reached for me. And as I came into the Love that never leaves, I started to feel the warmth fill my heart and my eyes opened to see all that has been there all along, for me. The dark days became suddenly brighter, the clouds lifted, and all that I need for life itself in good moments and terrible, in the ordinary and the amazing, from the depths of despair to the heights of heaven is an open heart to You. Thank You for being here for all the time it has taken for me to turn my mind around. Thank You for the Free Will that allows me to choose my own path. And although I may slip again, I now know the gift and glory of being lifted up into the light and no longer will I want to drown in the darkness of my own making. amen.

*Gibran Kahlil Gibran, [1883-1931] the third best-selling poet of all time after Shakespeare and Lao-Tzu, was born in Lebanon and emigrated to the US as a young man settling in Boston's South End. Also an artist and a writer - most famous is his fictional but inspiring The Prophet written in 1923 and which gained a tremendous resurgence of popularity during the 1960s counterculture turbulence and took new root within the New Age movement. Raised a Maronite Catholic, Gibran was also influenced by Islam, particularly Sufi mysticism and had strong connections with the Baha'i faith. His request to be buried in his native Lebanon was fulfilled by his close friend and his sister.

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Meditation Moment in Eastertide: Tuesday, Week 5 '23

We should ask God to

increase our hope when it is small,

awaken it when it is dormant,

confirm it when it is wavering,

strengthen it when it is weak,

and raise it up when it is overthrown.

~ John Calvin*

Well, God, I think I'm a pretty hopeful person. But as I think about it in this moment, I'm not always sure what I'm hopeful about. When I was young I was hopeful about a happy marriage and great kids, a successful career and lots of travel. Some of it has happened. Some of it went a very different way. There were times when things were so bleak I didn't care enough to even want to have hope. But then, through no action of my own, hope blossomed again.

SO, what am I hopeful about now? Mostly, I want to be hopeful even when hope by itself doesn't change things. Of course I hope for the usual list: good health, healthy family and friends, world peace, ending hunger and violence, etc. But so much these days, well, I guess most of the time, is beyond my control and that takes me down a path of despair, or, at the very least feeling disheartened.

I want to and hope to be a better follower of Jesus, taking to heart, especially His commandment to love You and all my neighbors and myself. Some days are better than others with those. At the very least, I know that when life is painful and chaotic, I can pray for the desire to hope and for, as Reinhold Niehbuhr says in his prayer, the wisdom to accept the things I cannot change and change the things I can**. And, when I am feeling hopeful, send a reminder for me to give thanks to You ~ an unexpected butterfly or a child’s smile, or the neighbor's dog who runs to me and licks my hand even with no treat in it! I do know that You are always here, sometimes a little kick somewhere can help. amen.

*John Calvin [1509-1564] was born in France and so would have been addressed by the French pronunciation of his name mostly lost to us over time, which is approximately Zhawn Calvahn. The ordained Calvin left the Roman Catholic Church and became a major player in the Protestant Reformation. His writings were contentious and he was influential in at least one execution. He and his contemporary, Martin Luther, had respect for one another early on though each had a differing theological view. There was a disagreement between Luther and a Reformer in Zurich, Huldrych Zwingli, over the interpretations regarding the Eucharist. Calvin's opinions on the matter caused Luther to equate Calvin with Zwingli. From those tempestuous beginnings, Calvin's theological perspective is seen as the major influence for the Reformed, Congregational, and Presbyterian churches throughout the world today. While not my favorite theologian, the lesson to be gleaned is that there is always something useful to be gleaned from reading, or listening, to someone with whom we disagree.

** Here is the full, original, unabridged Niebuhr text of the famous Serenity Prayer:

God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

Monday, May 8, 2023

Prayers of the People: Unquestionably ~ 6th Sunday of Easter '23 Yr A

For Sunday, May 14, 2023; Readings: Acts 17:22-31, Psalm 66:7-18, 1 Peter 3:13-22, John 14:15-21

The God who made the world and everything in it...gives to all mortals life and breath...From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth...so that they would search for God...though indeed he is not far from each one of us. [Acts 17:24a, 25b-26a, 27]

Bless our God...who holds our souls in life...who has not rejected my prayer, nor withheld his love from me. [Psalm 66:7a, 8b, 18b]

Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear...And Baptism...now saves you - not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ... [1 Peter 3:13-14a, 21]

Jesus said, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of Truth...You know him because he abides with you, and he will be in you. I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you." [John 14:15-18]

This week's readings begin with reminders of the work of God in Creation, Who, in addition to making the world, gave us life and breath and holds our souls in life. God is known to us if we open ourselves to discover God’s Presence within. While life is often difficult, God is with us throughout it all. Paul tells the Athenians ~ and now us ~ the obvious, God doesn't need anything as God is the Creator who made everything. Furthermore, part of God's plan, is for us to search for and discover God within and around us.

In the reading from 1^st Peter, the writer is comparing those whom God saved through Noah and the Ark as they were safe upon the water and Baptism, which this prefigured and now saves us as an appeal for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus.

The words Jesus speaks in John's Gospel this week are from the part of John’s Gospel known as The Farewell Discourse that Jesus gave at Last Supper after washing the disciples' feet. The Discourse in John’s chapters 14-17 gives information and instruction to the gathered. We know well of Jesus telling the gathered of the coming betrayal, and Peter's denial. But, there is much more to this conversation. In last week's passage, Jesus says Do not let your hearts be troubled and this week he tells of asking God, on our behalf, for another Advocate who is within us, the Spirit of Truth. He reassures the disciples, who didn't yet understand at this point ~ and we who do now know what was to come ~ that he will not leave us orphaned; we will see him again.

When we combine these passages and the ones ahead toward and on the Feast of Pentecost, we find another powerful reminder ~ the constancy of our ever-present God in Three Persons: Creator, Redeemer, Advocate. And the truth is, when we actively work to build and keep a good conscience, and recognize and call upon the Trinity within us, we are more and more able to relinquish the strong hold of earthly distractions along with its fears and griefs, its anger and frustrations.

The Gospel this week begins with Jesus saying If you love me, you will keep my commandments. It ends with They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.

We are called to walk through our human existence with our Creator, Jesus our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit of Truth, our Advocate; all are within us on the Way. Knowing we are loved in each and every moment is the understanding of and reminder to give love, even in and with the most difficult of our encounters with God’s own People. Far from easy much of the time, yet as the saying goes, Love IS the answer ~ Unquestionably!

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ God of All Creation, we live, we move, and have our being in You, who gave us all life and breath. You overlook our ignorance and never withhold Your love. Quicken our desire to turn toward You, repent for things done and left undone, and pledge our love and obedience to Your Commandments.

Blessed be our God

RESPONSE: Who holds our souls in life

~ God of All Creation, embolden and encourage us as we urge productive humanitarian and environmental actions and justice from the political leaders of our Nation, our Community, and our Planet, in the service of safety, mercy, and health for all. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

Blessed be our God