September 28, 2008
Edwards (Knox) United Church
Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost
1 Thessalonians 5:12-22
Read the passage: The Message or The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
Mark 6:41-47
Read the passage: The Message or The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
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The Rev. Dr. George Hermanson
The poet George Herbert called prayer the “churches banquet.” Prayer is the food that creates and sustains the community dedicated to living out Paradise in this world. Paul suggests that we pray unceasingly. Our living is prayer.
The community of faith begins in prayer. It is not a last resort, as it is for many, but that which forms us. It is a way of bringing to our attention that God is present in this moment and that this ground we stand on is holy ground, sacred space. In prayer our minds are quieted and focused; it clarifies intention; it awakes the imagination. As a communal practice it creates the community for we become one voice even as we pray in silence, for our attention is always directed. In that moment we have one voice and one hope.