Last night at Collins Street we began a series of reflections on the practices of faith. Throughout the series we’re using a simple liturgy to surround our discussion. Part of it is a prayer we’ve adapted from Michael Luenig in his book A Common Prayer. They are beautiful words.
Dear God,
we struggle,
we grow weary,
we grow tired.
We are exhausted,
we are distressed,
we despair.
We give up,
we fall down,
we let go.
We cry,
we are empty,
we are still,
we grow calm.
We are ready,
we wait quietly.
[Silence]
A small shy truth arrives.
Arrives from without and within.
Arrives and is born.
Simple, steady, clear,
like a mirror,
like a bell,
like a flame,
like the rain in summer.
A precious truth arrives
and is born within us,
within our emptiness.
We accept it,
we observe it,
we absorb it.
We surrender to our bare truth.
We are nourished,
we are changed,
we are blessed,
we rise up.
For this we give you thanks.
Amen.
Michael Luenig, A Common Prayer, HarperCollins, 1991.
