Praying for Christian Unity

The Unity of the Church is not an “extra.” It is essential for effective ministry. Each year, we pray for that unity to grow and deepen in our divided Christian witness. Each year the week of prayer will begin with the Feast of the Confession of St. Peter the Apostle and concludes with the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle, thus emphasizing the unity of these two Apostles (who were both martyred in the persecution under Nero) and connecting the primacy of Peter (favored by many Roman Catholics) with the liberty of conscience so championed by Paul (favored by many Protestants) into one whole offering of prayer, praise, and mission.

During this time we are all called to remember that the division between Christians is perhaps the greatest scandal and failing among us. It so deeply vitiates the witness of the Gospel in many places that no amount of evangelism or church-growth efforts will suffice. We must overcome our divisions.

To do this, we need only turn to our own baptism. In recognizing all those who are baptized with water in the Name of the Trinity as fellow Christians, the modern Episcopal Church has taken a great step toward a basic unity with other traditions. The Apostolic Faith we emphasize is fully sufficient to meet the need, providing both the essential saving message of Salvation and the necessary humbling of our various “traditions” so we may live out Our Lord’s call to bring the Gospel to all peoples.

This work must be done in prayer and in the hearts of individual believers as well as in wider settings and groups. Until we understand that division in the Church is a sin and a violation of our baptismal covenant, and until we accept that unity comes not from institutional or bureaucratic initiatives but from participation in the Unity of the Triune God, the present fractured condition of the Church will remain the hideous and shameful wrong it is. Only prayer can overcome this.

This following prayers are traditionally offered in the mid-morning, recalling the hour of Pentecost when the Church was given the Holy Spirit so that it might accomplish its mission in unity and love. They may also be part of your morning or evening prayers during this week, and as part of our preparation for the Holy Eucharist.

* * *

A Memorial for Visible Unity in the Christian Faith

Antiphon: Jerusalem is built as a city that is at unity with itself.

V. O pray for the peace of Jerusalem;

R. They shall prosper that love you.

Let us pray.

Grant, we pray you, Almighty God, to the whole Christian people unity, peace, and true concord, both visible and invisible; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your Apostles, Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you; Regard not our sins, but the faith of your Church, and grant her that peace and unity which is agreeable to your will; who lies and reigns God for ever and ever. Amen.

For the Church (BCP p. 816)

Gracious Father, we pray for thy holy Catholic Church. Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ thy Son our Savior.  Amen.

For the Unity of the Church (BCP p. 818)

O God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior, the Prince of Peace: Give us grace seriously to lay to heart the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions; take away all hatred and prejudice, and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord; that, as there is but one Body and one Spirit, one hope of our calling, one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of us all, so we may be all of one heart and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth and peace, of faith and charity, and may with one mind and one mouth glorify thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For the Unity of the Church (BCP p. 255)

Almighty Father, whose blessed Son before his passion prayed for his disciples that they might be one, as you and he are one: Grant that your Church, being bound together in love and obedience to you, may be united in one body by the one Spirit, that the world may believe in him whom you have sent, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

An Act of Thanksgiving in the War on Entitlement

A sense of entitlement is one of the greatest enemies to the spiritual life. When we cease to give thanks for everything as a gift from God, we cease to be truly Eucharistic. The priestly flow of offering-receiving-thanking is interrupted when we come to think of ourselves as in any way entitled.

It is precisely this entitlement mentality that sits at the heart of many of the world’s injustices. Those who have great riches, power, and privilege are unlikely ever to share these gifts or use them for the Gospel’s sake if they think of them as personal possessions. Those who seek what they do not have are tempted to grasp them by right, rather than affirm them as gifts offered to all people by God.

What is needed is a regular practice of humility and gratitude in prayer, restoring the Eucharistic and priestly dimension to our daily life through intentional acts of regular gratitude to God.

Unfortunately, our era is not particularly adept in this sort of prayer. We are often far more focused on rights and demands than on humility and gratitude. Perhaps this is why contemporary church life seems so mired in ideological battles rather than gripping the imaginations and hopes of many people. Yet, this can easily change when faithful Christians began to pray humbly.

As is so often the case, we are well served here to cast our hearts and eyes over the treasury of Christian experience. Here, we meet forms of prayer that at first seem odd, even uncomfortable, but (when given time to speak to us) reveal a wisdom our own era lacks. Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, writing in the 16^th and 17^th centuries, did exactly this.

Andrewes combined passages from the Sacred Scriptures, the writings of the Early and Medieval Church, as well as his own experience as a Christian and a pastor in order to create rich prayers contemplating the deeper mysteries of our faith. He also reflected on his own struggles with pride, covetousness, lust, anger, &c., so that his work tells of a truly lived Christianity…not a “theoretical” faith.

Below is an adaptation of one of Andrewes’ Acts of Thanksgiving. Try praying it deeply. Don’t get “hung up” on the language of being a sinner—so uncomfortable to those schooled in self-esteem—but allow the truth of one’s complete lack of entitlement to speak to your soul. Be freed by accepting all as a gift. Come before God without any sense of deserving anything, so that you may embrace the absolute, the extraordinary gift of your life, your knowledge of God, your salvation in Christ, and all God’s blessings (known and unknown, desired and unwanted, remembered and forgotten).

Make this a regular part of prayer, so that gradually—and by God’s grace alone—all sense of entitlement in your life may be exposed and eradicated. Then, the Gospel will shine through you as it does the glass of a window…giving light to all who encounter you, and illuminating your soul with received joy.

+  +  + 

An Act of Thanksgiving for God’s Blessings

My soul praises the Lord for the good things he has done

   [here, add specific thanksgivings].

Day by day, for these your mercies unto me, which I remember,

   and for others, exceedingly numerous,

   forgotten by reason of their multitude and by reason of my forgetfulness

Those given when I am willing, knowing, asking;

   those given when I am not asking, unaware, unwilling:

I confess and give thanks to you,

I bless and praise you as is due every day,

   and with all my soul and mind I vow:

Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you,

Glory to you and glory to your all-holy Name

For all your divine perfections:

For your inexpressible and unimaginable goodness and mercy

   to sinners and the unworthy,

And to me, of all sinners altogether the most unworthy:

   yes, O Lord, for these and for the rest

Glory and praise and blessing and thanksgiving

   by the voices and concert of voices,

   both of angels and humans and

   of all your saints in heaven and of

   all your creation whether in heaven or on earth,

      or under their feet,

Of me, the unworthy and miserable sinner,

   your lowly creature,

Both now, in this day and hour,

   and every day unto my last breath,

   and unto the end of the world

   and for ever and ever. Amen

-- adapted from “A Particular Thanksgiving” by Bp. Andrewes

A Week in Prayer

Over the centuries a tradition developed in the Church of attaching specific days to important aspects of the Christian faith. The following prayers, taken from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, provide a miniature “tour” of a number of the themes and figures associated with this ancient custom. Use them at some point in the day—either as part of your regular prayers, or independently. They may serve as a good place for further prayer or reflection.

This custom of offering a daily “memorial” is simply one more way that Classical Anglicanism offers for living the Liturgy, and for deepening our own appropriation of the Biblical and Creedal faith, “once delivered to the saints.”

Sunday:

The Resurrection

Almighty God, who through your only‑begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord’s resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life‑giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Monday:

The Holy Trinity

Almighty God, you have revealed to your Church your eternal Being of glorious majesty and perfect love as one God in Trinity of Persons: Give us grace to continue steadfast in the confession of this faith, and constant in our worship of you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; for you live and reign, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Tuesday:

The Holy Angels

Everlasting God, you have ordained and constituted in a wonderful order the ministries of angels and mortals: Mercifully grant that, as your holy angels always serve and worship you in heaven, so by your appointment they may help and defend us here on earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Wednesday:

The Holy Apostles

Almighty God, you have built your Church upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone: Grant us so to be joined together in unity of spirit by their teaching, that we may be made a holy temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Or

St. Joseph

O God, who from the family of your servant David raised up Joseph to be the guardian of your incarnate Son and the spouse of his virgin mother: Give us grace to imitate his uprightness of life and his obedience to your commands; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Thursday:

The Holy Spirit

Almighty and most merciful God, grant that by the indwelling of your Holy Spirit we may be enlightened and strengthened for your service; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Or

The Holy Eucharist

God our Father, whose Son our Lord Jesus Christ in a wonderful Sacrament has left us a memorial of his passion: Grant us so to venerate the sacred mysteries of his Body and Blood, that we may ever perceive within ourselves the fruit of his redemption; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Friday:

The Holy Cross

Almighty God, whose beloved Son willingly endured the agony and shame of the cross for our redemption: Give us courage to take up our cross and follow him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Saturday:

The Blessed Virgin Mary

Father in heaven, by your grace the virgin mother of your incarnate Son was blessed in bearing him, but still more blessed in keeping your word: Grant us who honor the exaltation of her lowliness to follow the example of her devotion to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Or

For All Baptized Christians

Grant, Lord God, to all who have been baptized into the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ, that, as we have put away the old life of sin, so we may be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and live in righteousness and true holiness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Litany of the Holy Spirit for Embertide

This litany, taken from the Cuddesdon Office Book, is one of the main tools I use each Embertide. While it was written for clergy (or those about to be ordained), much of it is easily adaptable to lay members of the Church.

In spite of its being written in older style English (or, perhaps, because of it being so), I think this litany works as a sort of prolonged meditation on the ways in which we know, honor, and receive guidance from the Holy Spirit in our lives as Christians. I encourage you to pray it slowly, taking time between petitions. You might wish to take some time in silence afterwards, either simply to stand before God, or to journal your own response to what is revealed through this prayer.

A Litany of the Holy Spirit

(Especially for use at the Embertides)

Lord, have mercy upon us.

            Christ, have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

O God the Father, of heaven;

            Have mercy upon us.

O God the Son, Redeemer of the world;

            Have mercy upon us.

O God the Holy Spirit, the Comforter;

            Have mercy upon us.

O holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, three Persons and one God;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, who at the beginning didst move upon the face of the waters;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, by whose inspiration holy men of old spake as they were moved;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, power of the highest, that didst overshadow Mary;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, through whom the holy Child Jesus waxed strong in spirit, and was filled with wisdom;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, who didst descent like a dove, and lighten upon Christ our Lord, at his baptism;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, of whom Jesus was led up into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, eternal Spirit, through whom Christ our Priest and Victim offered himself without spot to God;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, who on the day of Pentecost didst descend upon the Apostles in the likeness of fiery tongues;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, by whom we have been brought out of darkness and error into the clear light and true knowledge of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, by whom the whole body of the Church is governed and sanctified;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, by whom we were new-born in Baptism;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, who didst strengthen us with they sevenfold gift at Confirmation;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, who makest intercession for us with groanings that cannot be uttered;

            Have mercy upon us.

O Holy Spirit, by whom the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts;

            Have mercy upon us.

By thy eternal procession from the Father and the Son;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thy glorious work in the mystery of the Incarnation;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thy lighting as a dove upon Jesus at his baptism;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thy descent in likeness of fire on the day of Pentecost;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thy life-giving power and might;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thine all-powerful intercession;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

By thy continual abiding in the Church;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From all sin;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From presumption and despair;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From impenitence and hardness of heart;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From envy, hatred, and malice, and all uncharitableness;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From impurity, whether of mind or body, and from all that has ever defiled thy temple within us;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From the spirit of thoughtlessness and levity;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From the spirit of covetousness and self-seeking;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From the lust of honor and pride of life;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From deafness to they call and warnings;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From neglect of thy graces and inspirations;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

From that sin against thee which has no forgiveness;

            Deliver us, O Holy Spirit.

 [In our preparation for the work of the ministry;

            Help us, O Holy Spirit.

In the solemn hour of Ordination;

            Help us, O Holy Spirit.]

In our dealings with souls committed to our charge;

            Help us, O Holy Spirit.

In success and in failure;

            Help us, O Holy Spirit.

In the solemn account that we must one day give;

            Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

We sinners do beseech thee to hear us, O Holy Spirit, that it may please thee to guide thy holy Church universal into all truth, and to fill it with thy love;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may give diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That, as we live in the Spirit, we may also walk in the Spirit;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may renounce the devil, the world, and the flesh;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may mortify the deeds of the body;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That with sincerity of purpose we may aim in all things at God’s greater glory;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That, in all our thoughts, words, and words, we may be confirmed more and more to the life and passion of the Lord Jesus;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may be gentle, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may rightly and duly administer thy holy Sacraments;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may ever reverently handle and devoutly receive the blessed Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may be enabled to shew forth thy light in the world, and be holy examples to the flock of Christ;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may be filled with thy sevenfold gift; the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and ghostly strength, the spirit of knowledge and true godliness, and the spirit of thy most holy fear;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That in our ministry we may not care to please, nor fear to displease, any but him who has called us to his service;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may count not our lives dear unto us, so that we may finish our course with joy, and the ministry received of the Lord Jesus;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may ever be mindful of that solemn account, which, for ourselves and others, we must one day give at the judgment-seat of Christ;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

That we may have grace to persevere unto the end;

            Hear us, O Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit;

            We beseech thee to hear us.

Lord, and Giver of life;

            We beseech thee to hear us.

Thou who didst descend at Pentecost;

            Have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

            Christ, have mercy upon us.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

Our Father, &c.

V. The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost;

R. He shall teach you all things.

Let us pray.

God, who didst teach the hearts of thy faithful people by the sending to them the light of thy Holy Spirit; Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through the merits of Christ Jesus our Savor, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.

Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid; Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of thy faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before thee for all members of thy holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and godly serve thee; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen

[And these prayers may be added or used as alternatives.

Let us pray for those who are to be ordered Priests.

O God, great in power, unsearchable in understanding, wondrous in counsels toward the children of men; Fill, we beseech thee, with the gift of thy Holy Spirit those who at this time humbly desire thy holy office of the Priesthood; that thy may be worthy to stand before thy holy altar unblameably, to announce the word of thy truth, to offer gifts and spiritual sacrifices unto thee, and to renew thy people in the laver of regeneration; that at the second coming of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, thin only-begotten Son, thy may go forth to meet him, and by thy multitude of thy mercies receive their reward: through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us pray for those who are to be ordered Deacons.

O Lord, our God, who by thin own presence dost shed the abundance of thy Holy Spirit on those who are set apart by thine inscrutable power, to become ministers and to serve thy spotless Mysteries; Keep thy servants who humbly desire the holy office of Deacon, that they may hold the mystery of the faith in pure conscience, with all virtue; enable them to discharge according to thy good pleasure the office assign to them by thy mercy; and fill them with thy holy and life-giving Spirit, with all faith and love, all power and sanctification. For thou art our God, and to thee we render glory, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

We pray and beseech thee, O Lord, in thy love and goodness: Send out from the height of thy holy dwelling-place, on all these thy servants for whom we have now made supplication unto thee, the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth, the Holy, the Lord, the Giver of life, who spake in law and prophets and apostles, who is everywhere present and filleth all things, and worketh by his sovereign choice in whom he will, sanctifying them after thy good pleasure; that thy great and holy name may be glorified through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.]

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen.