Morning Prayer Tuesday, 22 September 2020
Primero Sueño, First Dream: On Crossing, A Whitmanesque
By Desirée Alvarez
What is it then between us?
¿Qué es entonces entre nosotros?
My horse is afraid of you and both of us are thirsty.
Stone face, we crossed the seas from Spain,
I’ve been riding for days past pyramids in Mexico.
Whatever it is, it avails not—distance avails not,
and place avails not. My horse and I are tired
of the blistering desert. Who is your family,
crowd of great heads in a field?
Who has conquered you and whom will I now conquer?
Big rock, your lips look like ancient waves.
Your mouth reminds me of my wife’s kisses goodbye.
I am lonely as the moon. Por favor, speak to me,
face in the grass. I remember the first time
I put my fingers inside a woman, and the first time
she put her fingers inside herself.
I too had receiv’d identity by my body,
my body the body uncertain, my body mixed,
dreaming of being a Spanish conquistador,
dreaming of being an Olmec head, carved and mouth sealed
forever. Keep your places, objects than which none else
is more lasting. We plant you permanently within us.
Being what— an across, a Zarathustra, a span
of scarf woven of seventeen colors from what roams,
what flies, what swims and what sings.
Being a woman and a man, stone-crafted and aqueous,
being brown, being tree and flood-tide,
being free citizen of the body earth, electing in revolt
to expand and bring down whatever rises between us.
Good morning and welcome to Morning Prayer
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
Amen.
Breathe in
Breathe out
Be still…
I arise today,
embraced in the arms
of God the Father,
empowered by the strength
of God the Spirit,
immersed in the love
of God the Son.
I arise today
in the company
of the Trinity,
Father, Spirit and Son.
I arise today
Amen
Presence
“Come to me all you who are burdened
and I will give you rest”
Here I am, Lord.
I come to seek your presence.
I long for your healing power.
Freedom
Guide me always to do your holy will
knowing that your strength will
carry me through.
Consciousness
How do I find myself today?
Where am I with God? With others?
Do I have something to be grateful for? Then I give thanks.
Is there something I am sorry for? Then I ask forgiveness.
The Word of God
Luke 8:19-21
Then Jesus’ mother and his brothers came to him,
but they could not reach him because of the crowd.
And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside,
wanting to see you.” But he said to them,
“My mother and my brothers are those who
hear the word of God and do it.”
WORDS OF WISDOM
While many Christians are familiar, and possibly even comfortable, with the idea of interfaith dialogue, few have had exposure to the discipline of interspirituality. While the first tends to be a respectful exchange of ideas; the second is a shared journey into the depths of the heart. Most Christians have been discouraged from exploring the teachings and practices of other religions, but I believe the loving and universal scope of Jesus Christ provides us with a model of how to recognize and celebrate truth on the many different paths to God.
Through Jesus Christ, God’s own broad, deep, and all-inclusive worldview is made available to us. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that the point of the Christian life is not to distinguish oneself from the other world religions, but to stand in radical solidarity with everyone and everything else. This is the full, final, and intended effect of the Incarnation—symbolized by the cross, which is God’s great act of solidarity instead of judgment. This is how we are to imitate Jesus, the good Jewish man who saw and called forth the divine in Gentiles like the Syro-Phoenician woman and the Roman centurions who followed him; in Jewish tax collectors who collaborated with the Empire; in zealots who opposed it; in sinners of all stripes; in eunuchs, pagan astrologers, and all those “outside the law.” Jesus had no trouble whatsoever with otherness.
If we are ready to reclaim the true meaning of “catholic,” which is “universal,” we must concentrate on including—as Jesus clearly did—instead of excluding—which he never did. The only thing Jesus excluded was exclusion itself.
After the incarnation of Jesus, humanity could more easily imagine a give-and-take, relational and forgiving God. Christians had a very good model and messenger in Jesus, but many outliers actually came to the “banquet” more easily, as Jesus often says in his parables of the resented and resisted banquet (Matthew 22:1–10; Luke 14:7–24), where “the wedding hall was filled with guests, both good and bad alike” (Matthew 22:10). What are we to do with such divine irresponsibility, such endless largesse, such an unwillingness on God’s part to build walls or create unneeded boundaries?
We must be honest and humble about this: many people of other faiths, like Sufi masters, Jewish prophets, many philosophers, and Hindu mystics, have lived in light of the Divine encounter better than many Christians. And why would a God worthy of the name God not care about all of God’s children? (Read Wisdom 11:23–12:2 for a powerful Scripture in this regard.) Does God really have favorites among God’s children? What an unhappy family that would create—and indeed, has created.
Cynthia Bourgeault
PRAYERS & INTERCESSIONS
We pray for the world…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
We pray for the universal church of Christ…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
We pray for one another and all those known to us…
Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
May God the Father
prepare your journey,
Jesus the Son
guide your footsteps,
The Spirit of Life
strengthen your body,
The Three in One
watch over you,
on every road
that you may follow.
Amen
BLESSING
May your day be blessed
by moments of quietness,
light in your darkness,
strength in your weakness,
grace in your meekness,
joy in your gladness,
peace in your stillness.
May your day be blessed
AMEN
Thank you for join us…have a wonderful day!
Revd. Ernesto Lozada-Uzuriaga
