Proper XII 07/27/25
The Still Point
A Time of Meditation and Reflection
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost:
Proper Twelve
... At the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless;
Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement. And do not call it fixity,
Where past and future are gathered. Neither movement from nor towards,
Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance, and there is only the dance... T.S. Eliot, Burnt Norton
Peace on each one who comes in need;
Peace on each one who comes in joy.
Peace on each one who offers prayers;
Peace on each one who offers song.
Peace of the Maker, Peace of the Son,
Peace of the Spirit, the Triune One.
Opening Prayer
O Lord, when your Son ascended into heaven, he sent down upon the Apostles the Holy Spirit, as he had promised, that they might comprehend the mysteries of the kingdom: Distribute among us also, we pray, the gifts of the selfsame Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Scripture Reading Luke 11:1-13
Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them, "When you pray, say:
Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial."
And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
"So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
Poem: “Praying” By Mary Oliver
It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris,
it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway
into thanks, and a silence in which another voice may speak.
Meditation
What an amazing gift Jesus gave his disciples (and to us!) in teaching them how to pray. He gave us actual words to say, words that resound through time and space, in different translations and versions. But perhaps even more important, He guided us in how to focus our prayers:
We bless God and pray for our world, our communities and our lives to be shaped by God’s will;
We pray for daily needs to be met,
For forgiveness for wrongdoings, strength to resist temptation and protection from danger.
(from the Church of England website)
The short poem by Mary Oliver may address those times when we don't know exactly what to say in prayer, and may find it difficult to even enter into a spirit of prayer. The poet emphasizes that the actual words do not matter so much. And, our prompting to prayer does not have to include something of elegant beauty; it may begin with weeds in a vacant lot! We just need to pay attention. The poem concludes with the concept that praying is ultimately a doorway to thanks, and "a silence in which another voice may speak."
Questions for Reflection
1. You may wish to create your own paraphrase of the Lord's prayer, or create a new prayer based on the short bullet list above.
2. For a very different imagining of the Lord's Prayer, see this translation by Neil Douglas-Klotz in Prayers of the Cosmos. https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-lords-prayer-prayers-of-cosmos.html
3. Reflect on a time when you experienced prayer as a doorway to thanks... or a silence in which another voice may speak. Are there ways you incorporate (or would like to incorporate) this as a regular practice?
4. Here is a beautiful choral version of the Lord's Prayer, by the 16th-century English composer John Sheppard (about 4 minutes long). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMPXKqymD30&t=4s
Prayers
We bring before God someone whom we have met or remembered today
We bring to God someone who is hurting tonight and needs our prayer
We bring to God a troubled situation in our world
We bring to God, silently, someone whom we find hard to forgive or trust
We bring ourselves to God that we might grow in generosity of spirit, clarity of mind, and warmth of affection
We offer our thanks to God for the blessings in our lives
We name before God those who have died.
Gracious God, you hear all our prayers: those we speak aloud, those we hold in our hearts, and those prayers for which we have no words. Hear the prayers of your people, and grant them as may be best for us, for the sake of your holy name. Amen.
Accept our thanks for all you have done, O God. Our hands were empty, and you filled them.
May Christ’s holy, healing, enabling Spirit be with us every step of the way, and be our guide as our road changes and turns, and the blessing of God our Creator, Redeemer and Giver of life be among us now and remain with us forever. Amen.
Reflections this month offered by: Frank Nowell
