Sunday's Night Prayer usually takes its lead from the day's liturgy but since it's still the weekend of the Fourth, we'll let the our nation's blessings and problems bring us to prayer...
Help us keep in mind and heart, Lord, that
Independence was declared with perfect unanimity...
Oh, discord and division there had been
- but then let go -
for the sake of something greater,
something stronger,
something nobler:
the welfare of the whole...
The rights of all as equals numbered three,
Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,
rights were understood to be
self-evident, unalienable,
endowed on each and all
by you, Lord, our Creator...
But now in our pride and greed:
we argue and debate the self-evident,
we deny and restrict the unalienable,
we trade liberty for license,
mistake pleasure for happiness
and redefine the terms
of what once we held so dear...
We've forgotten so much, Lord
when there's so much to remember,
to repent of and reform,
to restore and redirect
to recover and reshape...
In those who govern our nation, Lord,
in those who mete out justice,
in those who make the law,
and in the minds and hearts of all:
stir up love and devotion
to those simple self-evident truths
that long ago laid the foundation
of this country we call home...
Protect us, Lord while we're awake
]and watch over us while we sleep
that awake, we might keep watch with you
and asleep, rest in your peace...
Amen.
Tonight's
music is a simple, instrumental variation on a familiar patriotic song. Listen for the moment when the melody itself feels the pain
of all we've forgotten - and then moves on to what can be ours again -
if we would only remember...
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