Praying with Those Who Cannot – Closing Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

We need to be able to pray with others who cannot or wish us to pray with them.   It is a privilege to do this.  It is our duty to do so in faith that we are not violating the integrity of that faith.

Most common prayer is safe.   It is not who writes the words.  If the words are truth then they are God’s truth.  When we speak the truth in faith it does not matter if the words are ours or written for us.  It is our heart that the Father longs to hear.

I am supposed to always pray.  I am required to pray for others.   I try to do both of these with joy.  I try to be in constant conversation with the Father.  I attempt to pray in every situation even if it were a muted cry for help. 

We must pray with those who need it.  We must respect their traditions without compromising our own faith.  We need to let go of our preferences in order to embrace the needs of others.  It is rewarding and will ultimate benefit us in following Christ. 

Make My Life a Prayer to You – Keith Green

You make my life a prayer to You

I wanna do what You want me to

No empty words and no white lies

No token prayers no compromise

I wanna shine the light You gave

Through Your Son You sent to save us

From ourselves and our despair

It comforts me to know You're really there

Well I wanna thank You now for being patient with me

Oh it's so hard to see, when my eyes are on me

I guess I'll have the trust and just believe what You say

Oh You're coming again, You're coming to take me away

I wanna die and let You give Your life to me, so I might live

And share the hope You gave to me, the love that set me free

I wanna tell the world out there, You're not some fable or fairy tale

That I've made up inside my head, You're God the Son

You've risen from the dead

Oh I wanna thank You now for being patient with me

Oh it's so hard to see, when my eyes are on me

I guess I'll have the trust and just believe what You say

Oh You're coming again, coming to take me away

I wanna die and let You give Your life to me, so I might live

And share the hope You gave to me

I wanna share the love that set me free

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – The Mysteries

Greetings Dear Reader,

I do not know if “Mysteries” is the best term for the topic at hand but it is the term we have.  There are mysteries in following Christ.  They are worth pondering.   When we use the Rosary we meditate on these to remind us of how much more God is than we realize.

Here are the “Mysteries” as designated by tradition:

The Five Joyful Mysteries are traditionally prayed on the Mondays, Saturdays, and Sundays of Advent:

The Annunciation

The Visitation

The Nativity

The Presentation in the Temple

The Finding in the Temple

The Five Sorrowful Mysteries are traditionally prayed on the Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays of Lent:

The Agony in the Garden

The Scourging at the Pillar

The Crowning with Thorns

The Carrying of the Cross

The Crucifixion and Death

The Five Glorious Mysteries are traditionally prayed on the Wednesday and Sundays outside of Lent and Advent:

The Resurrection

The Ascension

The Descent of the Holy Spirit

The Assumption

The Coronation of Mary

The Five Luminous Mysteries are traditionally prayed on Thursdays:

The Baptism of Christ in the Jordan

The Wedding Feast at Cana

Jesus' Proclamation of the Coming of the Kingdom of God

The Transfiguration

The Institution of the Eucharist

I think there are many mysteries that we may ponder.  It is in these mysteries that we are reminded of the power and creativity of the one we follow.  It is in them that we see the uniqueness of our faith.   If we find that we must pray in this manner it is good to keep our focus on the nature of the one to whom we pray.

It is a mystery to me why he bothers with us, but he cleared that up as well.  The Father loves us.  “Here’s a riddle for you; find the answer.  There’s a reason for the world, you, and I.”

To the Mystery – Michael Card

When the Father long to show

The love He wanted us to know

He sent His only Son and so

Became a holy embryo

That is the Mystery

More than you can see

Give up on your pondering

And fall down on your knees

A fiction as fantastic and wild

A mother made by her own child

A hopeless babe who cried

Was God Incarnate and man deified

That is the Mystery

More than you can see

Give up on your pondering

And fall down on your knees

Because the fall did devastate

Creator must now recreate

So to take our sin

Was made like us so we could be like him

That is the Mystery

More than you can see

Give up on your pondering

And fall down on your knees

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – Glory Be

Greetings Dear Reader,

My paternal Grandmother used an expression when she would wonder at something.  She would look skyward and say, “Glory be!”  Because I grew up in the Catholic faith I knew the prayer call the Glory Be from a very young age.  Here it is:

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: And to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

It is a prayer that anyone who follows Christ can pray in good conscience.   It is an excellent affirmation of worship.  It is short, simple, and worshipful.   If my intention is to always glorify God then my intention fulfills the command the love God.  

Once again if I am praying with someone who cannot I can pray this in faith that I am doing good and not speaking words that I cannot express with my whole heart.  It is good to be reminded that I am to glorify God in all that I do. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – Hail Mary

Greetings Dear Reader,

Let me first be clear in that I mean no disrespect to anyone in this writing.  What I am about to say is controversial depending upon what you believe concerning the mother of Jesus.  I have expressed what I think in the afterword of The Foster Father of God.  Feel free to read it and share your thoughts with me.  

When praying the Rosary the most frequent prayer is the Hail Mary.   Here is the most common text:

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

First let me say that I find the original version of this prayer as handed down by the church fathers much more in line with what I believe:

God-bearing Maid, rejoice, grace-filled Mary, the Lord with thee. Praised thou among women, and praised the fruit of thy womb, because it was the Saviour of our souls that thou barest.

The only issue I take with the extant version is the request that Mary pray for us.   Since we have direct access to the Father through faith this is unnecessary.   It does not mean that I do not value that others intercede for me.  In truth I cherish it and ask that you do so as often as you feel compelled. 

It also concerns me a bit that the rosary is dominated by prayers to Mary.  Again I am not trying to offend anyone but the focus should always be on God.  Again I feel that the earlier version of this prayer meets this obligation.  

We must not forget that Mary payed a great price for us to have our Saviour.   She suffered ridicule and loss.  She was there as her Son died for those who killed him.   She deserves honor and respect for the woman she is.  

When I pray on behalf of others I must respect their beliefs without compromising mine.   This is the compromise I have found that works for me with this particular item.  It bears repeating that what matters is that we pray in faith. 

Mary’s Song – Petra

Hold that blanket closer Mary dear

All the world waits with you for your day

But for now the wind is cold and it's drear

And Bethlehem's still so far away

Do you remember the way you felt back then?

Joy and wonder filled your soul and when

The angel slipped away

You knew your life would never be the same

And now you're travelling, travelling on a road to Bethlehem

Wandering thoughts fly away

If you knew the road that lay ahead of Him

Would you break down and cry?

Your child is born to die

Feel that hand of strength upon your own

A husband's love that guides along the way

And as his understanding has grown,

His hopes too are centered on that day

For do you remember the way he looked back then,

Pain and sorrow filled his eyes until when

The angel came to say

The Savior's birth was meant to be this way

Think back on that promise you received

For him in whom the prophets long believed

Now belongs to you, you've been chosen too

But He's the One Who's gonna shine

We call His name Jesus, Immanuel

He'll save His people from sin and hell

And of His kingdom there will be no end

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – The Apostle’s Creed

Greetings Dear Reader,

So we arrive at the heart of what started this thinking.   The prayers involved in praying the Rosary are common and known by many both Catholic and not.   To say that it is wrong to pray the Rosary is something that reflects puerile thinking and makes too many assumptions to be valid. 

If we examine the actual prayers of the Rosary we may find that there in good there into which every Christ follower may tap.   The first thing to consider is what we have already discussed; any prayer spoken in faith has validity.  Another consideration is that it is healthy to review things that we believe in an ordered manner.  It can reassure us and help us to ponder new questions in the proper framework.

The first thing we consider is the Apostle’s Creed.   I had to memorize it in grade three.  Here is the text:

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate,

Was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

It is worthy to note a few important details here.  First is that this is the earliest creed of which we have record.  It influenced the Nicene Creed.  It is first recorded in Milan in 390 A.D.  In text we should consider a few distinctions that make it common to all. 

The first is that the word “catholic” here does not refer to the denomination of that same name but rather to the original meaning of this word which is “universal”.  It speaks to the common connection between all followers of Christ.   

Second the word “communion” refers to our common union in Christ.   We symbolize this in celebration of bread and wine.   No matter how we dress or windows or our ceremonies if we follow in faith we are united.  We cause the divisions when we fail to see this.

The last thought for this is that praying this creed affirms what we believe to the Father.  It reminds us that we have a common mission.  In Christ alone we stand and work.  His command is for us to do this in love.  There is no use in praying this rote.   The power comes from the affirmations and our faith in them.  In that I can stand in faith as I pray.  In that there is no shadow or doubt. 

Creed – Petra

I believe in God the Father, maker of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ His only son, I believe in the virgin birth.

I believe in the Man of Sorrows, bruised for iniquities.

I believe in the lamb who was crucified, and hung between two thieves.

I believe in the resurrection, on the third and glorious day

I believe in the empty tomb, and the stone that the angel rolled away

He descended and set the captives free

And now He sits at God's right hand and prepares a place for me

This is my creed

The witness I have heard

The faith that has endured

This truth is assured

Through the darkest ages past

Though persecuted it will last

And I will hold steadfast

To this creed

I believe He sent His spirit, to comfort and to reveal

To lead us into truth and light, to baptize and to seal

I believe He will come back, the way He went away and..

Receive us all unto Himself but no man know that day

This is my creed

The witness I have heard

The faith that has endured

This truth is assured

Through the darkest ages past

Though persecuted it will last

And I will hold steadfast

To this creed

I believe He is the judge, of all things small and great

The resurrected souls of men, receive from Him their fate

Some to death and some to life, some to their reward

Some to sing eternal praise, forever to the Lord

And through the darkest ages past

Though persecuted it will last

And I will hold steadfast

To this creed

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – Constant Prayer

Greetings Dear Reader,

I do not think that I ponder enough the aspect of constant creation.   We are renewed always by the Father.   We are constantly being recreated in his image.  Every moment he invests in every individual.  We are constant creation.

In the same way the Father desires constant conversation.  There was a time when Bezel, my younger Son would constantly ask me questions.  They were usually simple and childlike but I never tired of his desire to know.  I also never tired of his desire to know me.

The Father is the same.  He wants us to know him in every moment.  He wishes for us to be in constant conversation with him.  We formalize things too much and call it constant prayer.  It is not wrong to call praying prayer but we do have an aspect of it that is informal.   We can just talk to God and he loves it when we do so.

If we are going to pray with those who cannot we need to be familiar with the Farther.  We need to be in constant conversation with him.  All that we have is from the Father and he wants us to know him in all things.  I would begin with just saying how I feel.  It always works. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – Thoughts and Prayers

Greetings Dear Reader,

In the recent tragedy of the shootings in Orlando, Florida many as usual have expressed their offered “thoughts and prayers” for the victims and their families.  This has been met with a new response.  Things have been said like “keep your thoughts and prayers and ban assault weapons.”

The things that come to mind here are twofold.  First is the idea that we should do anything without prayer.  I will not weigh on the gun question here.  I have often made it clear that I abhor violence against anyone.  Others in my clan have weighed in on this better than I could.

Inside this is the idea that we can succeed at anything good without the support of the Father.  Prayer has validity and is needed more as the world darkens.   Those who follow Christ are supposed to be in constant conversation with God.  The response we are to have to tragedy is to ask the Father to aid those in need.

This gets rejected by the masses because faith without works is dead.  Jesus’ brother explains that we cannot wish well for someone and not act.  We dare not expect the world to hear the sincerity of our offered prayers if we are not going to act.  People trust how they are treated.

The problem is that we are not on the front lines when others are in need.  We are not living out the faith we profess in sacrificial undeniable ways.  Until we do we have no right to expect any acknowledgement from those who do not believe.   We do not give enough yet.  We do not love enough yet. 

Another thought is that we do not look people in the eye and engage with them.  We do not tell them that we are praying for them.  We water it down as the socially acceptable “thoughts and prayers.”   If we are not confident that saying we are praying for is evidence in our lives then we should be silent.  If we are living out our faith then our expressing that we pray out of compassion may be heard.

Our failure to live our faith erodes both the effectiveness of our prayers and our words about faith to others.  As my Grandfather used to say, “You do what you believe.  Everything else is just religious talk.”

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – The Father

Greetings Dear Reader,

I realize that I am late in the day.  I had not planned this segment of this to coincide with Father’s Day but here it is.   Please know that as a father and grandfather I truly am grateful for my Children and Grandchildren.

When Jesus wished for us to understand more clearly how to pray he taught us:  “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’”

The Father wished for us to love here as he loves there.  He desires for us to forgive to the measure that we need forgiveness.  He desires for us to depend on him.  He wants to deliver us from the power of the evil one.

The Father loves us.  We can repeat this prayer as often as necessary to understand this.  As it is above we are to be below.  We need to live out forgiveness and dependence upon the Father.   We must pray for things to be as the Father wishes.  We must count on the fact that we will ultimately be delivered from evil.   

When we pray for those who cannot this is what we must wish for them.  We need them to see the love and providence of the Father.   We need to help them see their need for him.  It is in the Father that we find our place to live and move in freedom.  It is the Son that leads there in faith. 

He is OUR Father.  He is loving and kind.  He makes no distinction other than faith or no faith.  He asks only that we love him and our fellow travelers.  I pray for those who cannot pray to understand this.   Everything else rests on this.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Praying with Those Who Cannot – Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

Recently my friend Joy posted a question about praying the rosary.   She cares for a woman who used to do this but no longer has the capacity to do so.  Rightly so Joy was concerned about doing what is right.  Rightly so she felt that the Father would allow such a thing.

When she posted about it I was happy to support her.  Then I realized that there was more here.  Why do we not speak more about praying for those who cannot pray for themselves?  It is clear that we are to pray for others.  It is clear that we are to pray for their wellbeing and their needs.

What I think we need to embrace is that we can also pray with those who cannot pray.  We do not even have to know what they would pray.  The Spirit intercedes for us when we do not know what to pray.

Not only do we honor the Father when we do things like this but we are caring for the “least of these” in the way Christ wishes us to care for them.  The faith we exercise when doing benefits us as well. 

Many would think that rote prayer would not be a good thing.  I would posit that any prayer, prayed in faith is more powerful than we can imagine.  We have lost our understanding of the extreme power that prayer holds.  We may be able to learn something about how to pray.  I am going to spend a little time on what the Rosary can do for anyone.

I am not telling anyone to do this.  Neither am I saying it is what we should do as our common practice in prayer.  What I do wish to do is acknowledge that the practice of many of my Catholic brothers and sisters has value and examine how I might walk closer to Christ through it.   Walk with me Dear Reader.  Talk with me.  Pray with me.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)