Prayers of the People for Advent
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This "Garden Goddess" by
artist Rachel Gaspers comes inside and
sits on my windowsill during Advent,
where the light from the window glows
through her swollen belly.
When I emailed Rachel
about using this image to evoke Mary
during Advent, she startled me by
replying that she had never thought of
her garden goddesses as being pregnant.
Rachel said, "I
emphasized her voluptuousness,
especially of tummy and legs, because
those are such womanly areas of our
bodies.
"However, being pregnant
seems comfortably right, because she
gives birth to ideas that need to be
nurtured into 'adulthood' just like
children."
You can see more of Rachel's sculpture
and paintings at
www.rachelgaspers.com. |
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These prayers take language and
inspiration from the scripture readings for the third Sunday of
Advent, which you can find on
The Lectionary Page.
More about responsive
prayer.
In
patience and in hope, (Leader's words in plain text.)
let us offer our prayers
to God,
saying with one voice,
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near. (People's responses in bold italic.)
For all who walk in God’s Holy Way: those in the pews and in the
pulpits; those at home and on the streets; for all who ponder
God’s promise in their hearts, and all who carry the good news
into the world,
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
For the nations and their leaders: that eyes may be opened and ears unstopped, and that peace and justice break forth in
every land.
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
For all the world: heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is
in them. For the early and the late rains, and the precious crop
from the earth. For the gathering darkness and the light of
hope.
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
For this community and all who live in it, each member of the
whole body: friend and stranger, parent and child, brother and
sister, widow and orphan. Strengthen weak hands, dear God, and
make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are of a fearful
heart, Be strong, do not fear!
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
For all who are nearest to you, O God: the lonely, the
out-of-work, the sick, the fearful, the cold, and the hungry. For the one
who is sorry, and the one who is ashamed. It is you, our God of
hope, who sets all prisoners free.
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
For all the departed, and all who remember,
We rejoice with joy and singing
For the coming of the LORD is near.
We are waiting, O God, with all the patience we can muster.
Beloved of angels and archangels, Lover of saints and sinners,
God our Savior, to you alone we pray, Amen.
Scriptural
references
The
call, “We rejoice with joy and singing,” as well as the
references to God’s Holy Way, weak hands and feeble knees,
opened eyes and unstopped ears, and encouragement for the
fearful heart, are all taken from Isaiah 35.
The reference to good news is from Matthew 11.
The refrain, “For the coming of the LORD is near,” as well as
the reference to early and late rains and the precious crops are
from James 5.
The references to heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in
them, and to prisoners set free, come from Psalm 146.
The reference to God our Savior is derived from the Song of Mary
in Luke 1.
Meditation for Advent
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
-- Psalm 130: 5-6
What am
I waiting for today?
To be reborn
myself, of course. As always. To emerge from this brittle cocoon
of impatience and doubt. To open new wings and fly. To live
purposefully, with faith.
I’m not the only
one waiting for this miracle. When I look around me, in my home,
community, country, and world, it’s like looking into a great
mirror, my own longings reflected back to me, my own impatience,
doubts, and fears magnified to a sometimes-frightening degree.
At times, the world today reminds me of an egg, with its brittle
shell cracking. Cracking because it is brittle, and also because
there’s something inside. Something alive, strong, and new,
battering its way out.
If so, then we’re
living in a new Advent. Traditionally in the Christian church
calendar, Advent is a period of inward reflection during the
final weeks of Mary’s pregnancy. It’s a time for space to open
up in expectant hearts – new, empty space – ready to be filled.
During these
troubled days, it helps me to remember that the time of waiting
in pregnancy does much more than make space for the new thing.
The time of waiting is also the time of gestation. In making
space for new light, I’m also taking part in its creation.
Prayer for Advent
In this season of Advent, dear God, for the sake of new life,
let me look ahead with courage and love. Let me act not from
fear, but from faith. And, dear God, out of my impatient nature,
may I do nothing to rush this birth, but give it time for
wholeness. Grant me the patience to wait. Amen.
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