reverently attending to closure

Reverence: the Practice of Paying Attention

by Barbara Brown Taylor  (from An Altar in the World, pp. 21, 24)

Reverence is the recognition of something greater than the self—something that is beyond human creation or control, that transcends full human understanding. God certainly meets those criteria, but so do birth, death, sex, nature, justice, and wisdom…

Reverence stands in awe of something—something that dwarfs the self, that allows human beings to sense the full extent of our limits—so that we can begin to see one another more reverently as well…

The practice of paying attention does take time. Most of us move so quickly that our surroundings become no more than the blurred scenery we fly past on our way to somewhere else. We pay attention to the speedometer, the wristwatch, the cell phone, the list of thing to do, all of which feed our illusion that life is manageable. Meanwhile, none of them meets the first criterion for reverence, which is to remind us that we are not gods. If anything, these devices sustain the illusion that we might yet be gods—if only we could find some way to do more faster.

Holy God, you invite us to open our eyes and really SEE, to perk up our ears and really LISTEN… to pay attention to all that is greater than us. Slow us down in this moment… to pay attention to you and your Word with reverence… that we might also learn to revere the holy in one another… and in each person, each creature, we encounter. In your name we pray… amen.


John 18:33-37 (Contemporary English Version)

33Pilate then went back inside. He called Jesus over and asked, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
34Jesus answered, "Are you asking this on your own or did someone tell you about me?"
35"You know I'm not a Jew!" Pilate said. "Your own people and the chief priests brought you to me. What have you done?"
36Jesus answered, "My kingdom doesn't belong to this world. If it did, my followers would have fought to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. No, my kingdom doesn't belong to this world."
37"So you are a king," Pilate replied.
"You are saying that I am a king," Jesus told him. "I was born into this world to tell about the truth. And everyone who belongs to the truth knows my voice."

Teacher Jesus, when the powerful tried to cut you down to size, you taught them of God’s kind of power. And when you gave your life for the world, we were connected forever to God’s kingdom. Draw us now, into your kind of power. Teach us how to hear your voice above all other voices. In your name we pray… amen.


Come, Lord Jesus    by Madeleine L’Engle

Come, my Lord! Our darkness end!
Break the bonds of time and space.
All the power of evil rend
By the radiance of your face.
The laughing stars with joy attend:
Come, Lord, Jesus! Be my end!

Lord Jesus, there are so many different endings that we face, losses that have left us without closure: lost employment, the deaths of loved ones, relationships that are on rocky ground, dreams that didn’t come true. And then we have endings that feel right, like we know it’s time to move on and start again. Fill us with confidence in you. Help us to trust that you are there at all our beginnings and endings, giving us the courage and strength we need. In your name we pray… amen.

Your love has brought me to my knees Oct 29 bfyj let by Heidi Jakoby

Below are the Reflections and prayers from last nights bread for your journey.

First Reflection: Taken from the Eulogy of Eunice Kennedy Shriver written by Maria Shriver (follow this link for the complete eulogy http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/08/maria_shivers_e.html )


Now if you had told me a few years ago that at the end of my mother's life she and I would sit in a room and just be, I would have said you were crazy. If you had told me that at the age of 52, I would finally get up the nerve to crawl into bed with my mother, hold her, and tell her that I love her, I would have said you were nuts. And if you had told me that Mummy and I would write poetry together, I would know for sure you that you'd lost your mind. But all those things really happened, as Mummy learned to let go. At the end of her life, she was strong and vulnerable, she was tired and tireless, determined and also ready to surrender to God. She did it all, she lived it all, and she loved us all.

To be honest, I think it's impossible for each of us to think about our life without Mummy. It's interesting, as we've talked amongst us the last couple of days, each of us felt like an only child. Each of us felt as though our mother was our best friend. Each of us talked to her every day, and sometimes more than once. And of course, I think if I said to my mother, which I often did, "I can't go on without you, I don't know how to live without you," she'd say, "You're fine, I've raised you well, now get out there, I don't want to hear one more yip, get going, your brothers will be nice to you."

And so I will, we all will, get up and get going.

But I wanted to leave you with this little poem that my mother and I wrote together in a hospital room in Boston. I read it to her several times, and she liked it, a lot. It has no name but I thought she would like me to share it with you. It goes like this:

Thank you Mummy, for giving me the breath of life.

Thank you for giving me a push over and over again.

Thank you for doing your best.

Here we are, you and me.

Now it’s you, needing the breath of life.

Now it’s you, needing the push.

You did it to me, let me do it for you.

Your love has brought me to my knees, I cannot breathe without you, I cannot think without you, I am lost without you.

Here we are, you and me, the clouds are gone, the sky is clear.

You are the star in my sky, you are the music in my heart.

Do you hear it? Listen. Listen. Mummy, you are the trumpet of my life.

Prayer: Loving God, as we mourn for all those who have taught us so much over the years, as we miss them , help us to remember their life, their smile and the lessons they taught us. Be with all those who are feeling lonely and let them know your love. Amen

Second Reflection:

Soul Cakes by Sting off his Winter’s Night CD Just released
http://www.onlylyrics.com/hits.php?grid=7&id=1038045

Prayer: God of the world thank you for the many souls who have come before us for their faithfulness and love. Thank you for your love and care in each of our relationships. Help us to honor those who came before us by teaching those who will come after us about your love. Amen

Third Reflection: John 11:32-44 (The Message)

29-32The moment she heard that, she jumped up and ran out to him. Jesus had not yet entered the town but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When her sympathizing Jewish friends saw Mary run off, they followed her, thinking she was on her way to the tomb to weep there. Mary came to where Jesus was waiting and fell at his feet, saying, "Master, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died."

33-34When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him. He said, "Where did you put him?"

34-35"Master, come and see," they said. Now Jesus wept.

36The Jews said, "Look how deeply he loved him."

37Others among them said, "Well, if he loved him so much, why didn't he do something to keep him from dying? After all, he opened the eyes of a blind man."

38-39Then Jesus, the anger again welling up within him, arrived at the tomb. It was a simple cave in the hillside with a slab of stone laid against it. Jesus said, "Remove the stone."

The sister of the dead man, Martha, said, "Master, by this time there's a stench. He's been dead four days!"

40Jesus looked her in the eye. "Didn't I tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

41-42Then, to the others, "Go ahead, take away the stone."

They removed the stone. Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and prayed, "Father, I'm grateful that you have listened to me. I know you always do listen, but on account of this crowd standing here I've spoken so that they might believe that you sent me."

43-44Then he shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And he came out, a cadaver, wrapped from head to toe, and with a kerchief over his face.

Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him loose."

Prayer: Loving God we thank you for your son and the example he set for us. We thank you for his humanness and his deep feelings for others. Grant us wisdom and strength to follow you and to celebrate the gift of each day with joy. In the name of your son Jesus Christ we pray. Amen