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A Great Prayer of Thanksgiving
in a Time of Horror |
Elder Susan Baker-Lehne, of Seventh Avenue Presbyterian Church in San
Francisco, approached the celebration of Communion this Sunday
"wondering how we can pray a prayer of thanksgiving this
week."
Out of her wrestling came a "Great Prayer of
Thanksgiving in a Time of Horror." She offers it for the use of
anyone interested, with the request that her name and copyright notice
(at the end of the prayer) be included on all printed copies of the
prayer. She concludes: "Blessings to all as we struggle to
find a way through the agony."
GREAT PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING IN A TIME
OF HORROR
In the Aftermath of September 11,
2001
Loving God, it is indeed right to give you thanks and praise in all
times and all places -
even here, even now,
in this week of tragedy
and horror.
God of light, we walk in darkness,
and the only way through
is to pray and praise.
But how can we
praise in a time such as this?
We turn to you asking
"How long, O
Lord?"
"Why do you hide
your face from us?"
Like the psalmist of old, we voice prayers
of accusation, pointing
our fingers,
blaming you for our pain;
Yet these same prayers also acknowledge your presence,
and the conviction that
you hear us, and care.
For this we are thankful.
We remember your Son Jesus, who asked the same
question we do:
"Why have you forsaken
me?"
We remember, and give thanks that for him and for us,
forsakenness is not forever;
light comes after even the
darkest night.
We remember those who stayed with Jesus to the end,
out of love bearing and
sharing his pain,
and each other's.
We remember, and give thanks that now as then
love carries us through a
sea of agony,
binding us together with
a strength
beyond imagining.
We remember the women who returned to the tomb,
not with hope, but with
spices and good-byes;
those whose faithfulness
in days of bleakness
led them to new life, joy
and hope.
We remember, and give thanks that for us, too,
our dreadful days are not
the end,
but invitation to a new
beginning,
a new way of being your
people in the world.
We remember Hildegard of Bingen,
recipient of visions she
never requested,
whose telling and living
of those visions influenced her world
in ways she never dreamed
of.
We remember, and give thanks that today,
in circumstances beyond
our control,
our gifts and prayers
participate in healing
a stunned and suffering
land.
We remember Elie Wiesel and Corrie ten Boom,
who walked through
senseless brutality and came out
scarred, changed forever,
but still singing of your presence.
We remember, and give thanks that for us as for them
you are here, in the
midst of the madness
that shadows our days.
We remember our own lives,
recalling times when we
felt your absence,
when emptiness consumed
and grief overcame us;
We remember those who touched us in the darkness,
held us in our
hopelessness,
watched with us for the
first rays of dawn.
We remember, and give thanks that as you were with us then
you are with us now,
sharing
our agony, holding our hands,
enveloping
us in transforming love.
God of mercy,
our hearts are seared
with images that won't fade,
with
the pain of those we'll never meet,
with
a longing for it all to simply go away;
our hearts are stretched
to new limits
as
we weep for those who are lost
and
stand with those who are left.
God of presence, it is hard to praise you this day,
but in faith we try,
as in sorrow and love our
broken hearts join
with the angels and
archangels and all the company of heaven,
evermore praising you and
singing:
Holy, holy, holy…
ã
Susan Baker-Lehne
Seventh Avenue Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, CA
September 15, 2001
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Some blogs worth visiting |
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Voices of Sophia blog
Heather Reichgott, who has created this new blog
for Voices of Sophia, introduces it:
After fifteen years of scholarship and activism,
Voices of Sophia presents a blog. Here, we present the voices of
feminist theologians of all stripes: scholars, clergy, students,
exiles, missionaries, workers, thinkers, artists, lovers and
devotees, from many parts of the world, all children of the God in
whose image women are made. .... This blog seeks to glorify God
through prayer, work, art, and intellectual reflection. Through
articles and ensuing discussion we hope to become an active and
thoughtful community. |
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Witherspoon’s Facebook page
Mitch Trigger, Witherspoon’s
Secretary/Communicator, has created a Facebook page where
Witherspoon members and others can gather to exchange news and
views. Mitch and a few others have posted bits of news, both
personal and organizational. But there’s room for more!
You can post your own news and views, or initiate
a conversation about a topic of interest to you. |
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John Harris’ Summit to Shore blogspot
Theological and philosophical reflections on
everything between summit to shore, including kayaking, climbing,
religion, spirituality, philosophy, theology, politics, culture,
travel, The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), New York City and the
Queens neighborhood of Ridgewood by a progressive New York City
Presbyterian Pastor. John is a former member of the Witherspoon
board, and is designated pastor of North Presbyterian Church in
Flushing, NY. |
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John
Shuck’s Shuck and Jive
A Presbyterian minister, currently serving as
pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton, Tenn., blogs
about spirituality, culture, religion (both organized and
disorganized), life, evolution, literature, Jesus, and lightening
up. |
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Got more blogs to recommend?
Please
send a note, and we'll see what we can do! |
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Plan now for our 2010 Ghost Ranch
Seminar!
GHOST RANCH SEMINAR
July 26-August 1, 2010
WE’RE
ALL IN THIS TOGETHER
CONFRONTING THE STRUCTURES OF INJUSTICE |
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