A Prayer for National Unity During a Pandemic on Baptism of the Lord Sunday

 

Composed by the Reverend Dr. John Edward Harris © 2021
 
See Genesis 1:1-5 and Mark 1:4-11
 
God of creation,
you began your creating by separating,
separating light from darkness,
and separating the water under the expanse from the water above it,
and calling it good.
 
But we, your children,
especially your children in the United States of America,
are now also separated, too separated, and that separation is not good.
We pledge to be “One Nation under God,”
but we act like many nations.
We call ourselves “The United States of America,”
but we label ourselves as blue, and red, and purple states.
We aspire to be “out of many, one,”
but we are fractured, and we are hurting, and some of us are scared.
 
We have separated ourselves into fortified political camps we call
Republican, Democrat, and Independent.
Racism and a history of slavery and segregation
divides us between black and white.
Xenophobia splits us into an America of European heritage verses
Americans of Asian, Hispanic, and even Native American descent.
The growing inequality between rich and poor
divides us into the 1% of obscenely rich and the 99% of the rest of us.
 
God of the Incarnation,
you came among us as light and to show us the light,
as truth to show us the way, the truth, and the life,
and through your Apostle Paul
you called us to break down barriers,
and to live as one body with many parts.
 
Centuries after John the Baptizer proclaimed a baptism of repentance,
may we hear and answer his call,
remembering our own Baptism as just the beginning of a life of repentance.
 
May your Spirit once again sweep over the earth,
not to separate,
but to unite,
not to create,
but to re-create,
to lead us to our true selves,
created in the image of God.
 
During political uncertainty and deep soul searching,
we pray for both President Trump and President-Elect Biden.
We pray for a peaceful inauguration and transition of power on January 20^th.
We pray for Democratic, Republican, and Independent Members of Congress,
and all federal, state, and local elected office holders,
that they will uphold their oaths to defend the constitution.
We give thanks for,
and pray for,
the Judicial branch of our Government,
and the Judges who defended not only the Constitution but the truth.
 
In the middle of a pandemic that is stretching our healthcare system to the breaking point,
and testing the stamina of health care workers,
we pray not only that vaccines can quickly be produced for all who want them,
but also swiftly distributed to all who want them,
so that we can put Covid-19 behind us and regain some semblance of normalcy sooner than later.
 
We pray this,
and numerous unspoken but heartfelt prayers,
in the name of Jesus Christ or risen Lord.
And let all the people say … Amen.

"God of the Seasons" Prayer

God of the seasons,

we marvel at how our weather can change in a matter of days,

from sunny and above 90 degrees one day

to rain and barely above 60 degrees a few days later.

We pray for those already affected by heavy rain and flooding,

and knowing that more precipitation and high water is on the way,

we pray for those yet to be affected.

We pray for those along the southeast US coast,

especially in the Carolina’s,

even now bracing for a direct hit from hurricane Florence sometime Thursday or Friday.

We know that there is also a very good likelihood that we ourselves,

before this time next week,

might be effected by the aftermath and remnants of Florence.

Keep us, our families, neighbors, friends,

and our communities in your care in the week ahead. Amen.

Prayer in Response to Marshall Co. KY Shooting

God of peace and wholeness,

our nation suffered yet another school shooting this past week.

Two were killed and seventeen wounded in Marshall County, Kentucky.

We pray not only for the families and friends of those killed,

and for the physical, psychological, and spiritual wellbeing of those injured,

but also for ourselves.

Give us the resolve to embrace common sense gun safety

and bring an end to our unfettered culture of gun violence.

May we live to see the day when students and teachers not only feel safe,

but are safe in their schools,

and such senseless violence is but a distant memory.

Lord, in your mercy . . . 

Prayer for August 6, 2017 - Hiroshima Day

Seventy-two years ago this coming Sunday, August 6, the United States ushered in the Atomic Age by dropping an atomic bomb upon Hiroshima, Japan. Here is an original prayer for use in worship that recognizes this as well as the fear that North Korea will possess nuclear warheads and ICBMs capable of reaching American soil.

God of peace,

we are mindful that seventy-two  years ago today,

as the only nation with an atomic bomb,

we unleashed the power of the atom upon Hiroshima, Japan.

Now we are but one of many nations possessing

the incredible destructive threat of nuclear weapons,

and we fear that North Korea will soon have that same capability.

Help us, the United Nations, and the peace loving nations of the world

find a  diplomatic and peaceful solution to the nuclear threat posed by North Korea,

that the Korean Peninsula, Japan, we, and the world might live free from fear of nuclear war.

In the name of the Prince of Peace we pray. Amen.

Prayer Pet Peeve

If I hear one more Ordained Minister, especially a Seminary educated PC(USA) teaching elder, or even a presbytery trained Commissioned ruling elder, invite people to pray by saying “Please bow your heads in prayer” I think I will scream.  I might just yell out “Not everyone bows their heads when they pray and there are various positions for prayer.” Ordained ministers and trained worship leaders ought to know better and be more inclusive by recognizing that there are various postures for prayer.

orans  ('"praying") position

Some people may indeed bow their heads with eyes closed or open when they pray but other people may look up or straight ahead with eyes closed or eyes open. Some people pray with hands uplifted as in the ancient orans position. Others pray, as I often do in public and in private, with open hands at waist level, a praying posture that seems to me to be a gesture of both offering as well as receiving. Just before The Prayers of the People in The Service of the Lord's Day I say "I invite you to find a stable and comfortable posture for prayer and to focus your heart and mind upon God," an invitation to prayer that suggests people may pray in whatever position works for them.

When I am about to celebrate the Eucharist I sometimes tell worshippers that the Great Prayer of Thanksgiving is a “heads-up, eyes-open kind of prayer” (See The Companion to the Book of Common Worship, edited by Peter C. Bower, page 64.) and that they ought to prayerfully observe what is happening at the table as we pray. If their heads are bowed down for the Great Thanksgiving they will not see what is happening at the table.

If you want to invite people to pray with you why not simply do so by saying “Let us pray.” Such a call to prayer invites people to pray whatever way they feel comfortable praying without feeling compelled to bow their heads or ostracized by not bowing their heads. After all, words do have meaning, and if I hear you say “Please bow your heads in prayer” I assume that is what you really mean because you do not know any better. If all you mean is “Let us pray together” then say so.

Essential Tenets Affirmation of Faith

I have been preparing to present the PC(USA) Book of Order mandated session provided period of study and preparation for ruling elders and deacons per G-2.0402. Part of my preparation has been revising an Affirmation of Faith I first created in 1985. Here is the new revision that is is intended, in part, to generally identify "the essential tenets of the Reformed faith as expressed in the confessions of our church" of the third question for ordination (W-4.4003b). Feel free to use it for instruction and/or in worship as long as it includes attribution.

Affirmation of Faith

(Adapted from the Book of Order F-2.03-05 by John Edward Harris ©2015)

One: We witness to the faith of the Church catholic.

All:   We witness to the mystery of the triune God

            and the incarnation of the eternal Word of God in Jesus Christ.

One: We uphold the affirmations of the Protestant Reformation.

All:   We uphold and affirm the Protestant watchwords –

            grace alone, faith alone, Scripture alone.

One: We express the faith of the Reformed Tradition.

All:  We affirm the sovereignty of God

            who in Christ and by the power of the Spirit

            creates, sustains, rules and redeems the world.

        We affirm the election of the people of God

            for service as well as for salvation.

        We affirm covenant life marked by a disciplined concern

            for order in the church according to the word of God.

        We affirm faithful stewardship that shuns ostentation

            and seeks proper use of the gifts of God’s creation.

        We affirm the human tendency to idolatry and tyranny,

            which calls the people of God

            to work for the transformation of society

                        by seeking justice

                        and living in obedience to the Word of God.

The Power of a Time Tested, Traditional Liturgy: Notes From Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday was almost as late as it could be in the calendar this year because Easter is also almost as late as it can be.  Even though spring was barely two weeks away, yesterday afternoon, when I looked out the window as I was preparing to leave the house for the Ash Wednesday service, I could see snow flurries gently falling from the sky.  I thought ashes and snow should not be included in the same sentence let alone occur on the same day.

This year’s Ash Wednesday was the first in nearly thirty years that I was not serving a church as a Pastor and the first in several years that I was not responsible for all or part of the Ash Wednesday service.  Not even the church I have been attending was marking the day with a service so I worshipped in a church of a different denomination but one I was not unfamiliar with.  I have even preached and co-lead worship in another congregation of the same denomination, but that was over six years ago.

It felt both odd and refreshing to be sitting in the pews rather than standing behind the pulpit or presiding at the table and to not know anyone attending the service.  I find it difficult not to be critical when I am a worshiper rather than a worship leader and yesterday was no exception.  The priest fumbled the liturgy a bit, but so have I, and he recovered well.  I thought the sermon was a little lacking, the preacher trying to pack too much into it, but he proclaimed the Word nevertheless.

I lean toward high church but high church done in a relaxed and folksy manner.  Yesterday’s Ash Wednesday service came close to that.  Among the twenty some in the sanctuary I saw some dressed in suits and ties and others in blue jeans and T- shirts.  The priest and acolytes were robed and the appropriate liturgical color was used.  While candles were burning there were no smells or bells but we knelt for prayer and stood for the Gospel. Worshipers seemed relaxed rather than stilted.  The priest moved naturally and seemed comfortable with the liturgy.

Yesterday was the first time in several months that I have heard all four lectionary readings included in the worship and I have missed them.  After a sermon which seemed to touch on all four readings, worshipers were invited to the rail where they received the imposition of ashes, the sign of the cross being traced on their forehead with the ash left from burning last year’s Palm Sunday palms, reminding me that from dust I came and to dust I shall return. 

Hearing and participating with worshippers as the Priest led them in the Sursum Corda lifted my heart and spirit.  Walking to and kneeling at the rail to receive the Eucharist engaged my body in a way it has not been engaged in worship in a long time.  Drinking real wine from a common cup warmed my throat and faith.

Yesterday was only the second time in months that I have received the Eucharist. It was the first time in recent memory I drank from a common cup containing real wine.  I prefer frequent celebration of the Eucharist and, if I had my way, I would offer wine as well as unfermented grape juice in the cup, but as a worship leader I do not always get my way.

I have missed what I experienced yesterday.  I do not necessarily need to worship in a high church liturgical setting every Sunday and might grow tired of it if I did, but once in a while I need it. Once in a while I need the power of a time tested, traditional liturgy to carry the Gospel rather than relying on the hymns, sermon, or prayers  employing contemporary language but void of biblical imagery.

Prayer for Memorial Day

Prayer for Memorial Day

 

Almighty God, strong to save,

            we remember the brave men and women

            who have given their lives on the land, in the air, and upon the sea

            in defense of our freedom and liberty,

            from the minutemen killed at Lexington or Concord,

            to the brothers killed from both the North and South in the Civil War,

            from the greatest generation who gave their lives during World War II,

            to the Active Duty troops and National Guard men and women

                        killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

As we remember and memorialize those who have died,

            may the day serve to memorialize them not through words engraved into stone

            but gratitude burned into our  hearts and minds.

 

God of earth, sea, and sky,

            we also pray that you will guard the brave women and men

            who are this very moment risking their lives for our country

            as they serve in foreign lands.

Give them compassion for enemies who also fight for patriotic causes.

And keep our sons and daughters,

            our husbands and wives,

            and our brothers and sisters

from hate that hardens,

            or from scorekeeping with human lives.

Though they must be at war, let them live for peace,

            as eager for agreement as for victory.

Encourage them as they encourage one another,

            and never let hard duty separate them

            from loyalty to your Son, our Lord, Jesus the Christ.

 

Note:  I have been using this prayer for some time, slightly redacted every year.  I have been using it so long that I have perhaps lost touch with some its original sources.  There are obvious allusions to the Navy Hymn, “Eternal Father, Strong to Save”, #562 in The Presbyterian Hymnal, as well as phrasing drawn from a prayer “For Those in the Military” #65 page  818 in the Presbyterian Book of Common Worship.

A Mother's Day Prayer

We remember with joy and thanksgiving
the significant women who have nurtured our life and faith,
women like
     Eve, mother of humanity;
     Sarah, mother of Isaac;
     Rebekah, mother of Jacob and Esau and your people Israel;
     Leah, Rachel, Zilpah and Bilhah, mothers of a holy nation;
     Mary, mother of our Lord Jesus the Christ and Mother of God;
     and our own mothers
     and women who like a mother
     nursed, nurtured, loved,
     and nourished us spiritually with their wisdom and faith.
We ask you to bless them,
and to honor them in heaven as we seek to honor them here on earth.
May our mothers and all women of faith
know our love and gratitude
not only this day but everyday.

This day also reminds us, loving God,
how like a mother hen you gather us together
and protect us under your wing;
and how you are faithful still,
like a mother who will not forsake her nursing child,
and so we give you thanks,
most of all,
for your maternal love and care. Amen