Prayer

Father God, in the beginning,
you gathered the waters in one place to let dry lands appear.
In latter times,
you parted the waters to let your people pass into freedom;
you led your people with a pillar of fire in the darkness.
You said:
‘When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you:
when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned;
neither shall the flame kindle upon you.’
‘Fear not: for I am with you.’
We thank you for all this
and commit our journey today into your mighty hands.

Lord, have mercy; Christ, prends pitié; Heer, ontferm u over ons.
Read the rest of this entry »

God our Creator, we thank you for the elemental nitrogen, which forms the silent majority in the air we breathe. We thank you for the bacteria that fixate nitrogen from the air, activating the element for metabolism in the biosphere.

With John Seymour, companion of Saint Fritz Schumacher, we remember the nitrogen cycle: We recall how humanity has split this one wonderful system into the two problems of pollution and the need of artificial fertilization.

We grieve for the wasted material containing fixated nitrogen, polluting the rivers and seas rather than fertilizing the land. We commit to you our anxieties about the Haber–Bosch process, which fixates nitrogen to make fertilizers by burning large amounts of fossil fuels.

God the Holy Spirit, give us wisdom and courage to repair and complete the nitrogen cycle.

Now we join the Society of Ordained Scientists in this collect: Almighty God, Creator and Redeemer of all that is, source and foundation of time and space, matter and energy, life and consciousness: Grant us in this Society and all who study the mysteries of your creation, grace to be true witnesses to your glory and faithful stewards of your gifts.

We pray all this through Jesus Christ, who is Alpha and Omega – who completes the cycle and reconciles all things to himself. Amen.

There’s a 12-hour prayer vigil for Main South at King & Main in Worcester tonight, organized by The Woo.

I stopped by tonight and joined about 15 others in a little silent prayer, a little spoken prayer, a lot of conversation, and the occasional psalm. As a Catholic, when I think “12-hour prayer vigil” I think of rosaries, litanies, and the Divine Office. This group is coming from a different place, and it’s interesting watching them figure out how they want to use this time. I’ll be back for more in the morning.

The Woo, a small “alternative Christian church” on Main Street, are planning an all-night prayer vigil at the corner of Main and King from 8pm Friday, Aug 14 to 8am Saturday, Aug 15. Several members of the congregation live in the neighborhood, and their hope is to “give God a foothold in the area” and pray for the brokenness they see there.

For more info, call Dan at 508-341-1103.

Over the year, we prayed for people and places around the world.
Today we pray for our own land and nations.
In particular, we pray for the elections upcoming:
the Oxfordshire County Council elections
and elections to the European Parliament.

Will you pray with me? Let us pray.
Read the rest of this entry »