Praying Hands
Photo via Pixabay.com, CC0 Creative Commons United Methodists vow to uphold their congregation through their prayers, but it isn't always clear what that means.
A friend since my college days, Jo Sparks, took the opportunity our visit provided to challenge our religion. She and her husband have been staunch United Methodists ever since we met 55 years ago. With her life experience, her beliefs changed a little, though to her they seemed huge.
So have mine, and I wanted to reassure her that she was not far from the Kingdom of Heaven. My one critique was that she, like too many Christians, didn’t yet grasp the intimacy Jesus expressed toward God. Jesus used the very personal “Abba” (meaning “Papa”) to address God in the Lord’s Prayer.
It is still so tempting to think of God as Almighty, Sovereign King, Master of the Universe, or some such lofty image. I saw that in her paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer, as you will see below.
She felt guilty about being impressed with Buddhist teaching but I reassured her that Buddhism does not claim to be a religion. Rather, it is a philosophy of life, though some Buddhists have taken on the trappings of religion with temples and monks. Religion or no, it is a widely used faith expression like the great religions of the world. Each has discovered the truths about human existence such as the Golden Rule. Christians see the “bread” among whatever “stones” may be in any religion or philosophy and feed upon it, learn from it.
I like her insights and promised I would post her paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer on my blog. I will break it up by putting in the Lord’s Prayer as we commonly knew it interspersed with her rendition. May this bless you as it blessed me:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Oh Great I-Am, whose form is a mystery to me, yet I know your essence resides in me and I acknowledge you are a special force in my being.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
You exist to keep me conscious of how this world works, how I work, and “how it could be” for all beings like me.
Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
I know I have human needs, like food, shelter and relationships with others and I also know that I behave counter to my best interests and in an annihilating way toward others. I am regretful of this nature and ask to be forgiven.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Remove me from these evil things and ways.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.
Give me strength, through your spiritual presence, to act in a way to further “how things could be,” which I know is your will. Stay with me, be present with me in my struggles, for your essence is in me, and in all other beings, has been present throughout History, and I know will endure forever and ever.
Amen.
So be it.
The Rev. Jerry Eckert of Port Charlotte, Fla., is a retired clergy member of the Wisconsin Annual Conference.