And a happy St. Paddy’s Day to one and all. Though it is somewhat ironic that the symbol of Irishness in this country is an English aristocratic kidnap victim stolen from Wales and abducted to Ireland who became a priest and returned to the country to which he was taken. Kind of weird when you think about it. Add to that the fact that in Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day was a religious celebration and the pubs were all closed, at least until very recently. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin was held in 1994 as a tourist attraction. All of which means St. Patrick’s Day as we commonly experience it - with the green beer and green rivers, with the kiss me I’m Irish buttons and leprechaun t-shirts - is a thoroughly American construct. Not that there’s anything wrong with that!
But spare a thought for poor St. Patrick. First of all, kidnapped and taken across the Irish sea to a foreign land, forced into slavery for six years until he finally escaped. You know his heart was full of prayers in all that time. Had to be. Prayers for rescue, prayers for redemption, prayers for salvation.
Had to be. Because he went back. He went back because his heart was full of prayers. Prayers for rescue, prayers for redemption, prayers for salvation. Except this time they weren’t prayers for himself, but for the people he somehow - don’t even try to figure it out, it doesn’t make any earthly sense - the people he somehow learned to love. So much so that his life and work caused the people of Ireland to name him their Patron Saint.
An incredible story to be sure. Only made credible by the power of prayer. The power of the Spirit to work transformation in hearts. Patrick’s heart, certainly. And the heart of a nation.
“Real prayer,” writes Richard Foster in Celebration of Discipline, “is life creating and life changing. ... To pray is to change.” Our Spiritual Discipline of the week (or one of them anyway) is Prayer. And I got there by looking at Psalm 107. Now you almost have to look at it all to get the grand sweep of the psalm. And in worship we will try to unpack it a little bit more. Here I want to start with the lectionary passage. Take a look at the verses chosen this week:
Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, those he redeemed from trouble 3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south. ... Some were sick through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities endured affliction; 18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress; 20 he sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from destruction. 21 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind. 22 And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices, and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.
Prayer. OK, the word prayer isn’t actually in those selected verses. All right, I’ll admit it, the word prayer doesn’t appear in any of the forty-three verses of Psalm 107. And, frankly, most commentators would say that Psalm 107 is about something completely different. Yet, if you look closely, you’ll have to admit that prayer permeates this psalm. Just substitute synonyms: give thanks - pray; cried to - prayed; thank the Lord - pray; offer thanksgiving sacrifices - pray. See? It is there.
More than that, the kind of transformation that Foster was talking about is there as well. From sickness to healing, from the brink of death to deliverance, and from desperation to thanksgiving. It is there. “To pray is to change,” says Foster and we can hear an “Amen” from the writer of Psalm 107.
In fact, this change is what Psalm 107 is really all about. If you take a wider look in the Psalm you will see a repeated theme. Verse 17 above says “Some were sick...” Verse 4 says “Some wandered in desert wastes...” Verse 10 says “Some sat in darkness and gloom...” Verse 23 says “Some went down to the sea ...” The psalm is full of folks in trouble, folks on the edge, folks dealing with difficult days. Folks in need of prayer, in other words.
Folks like Patrick. OK, I don’t know for sure in a fact check-able kind of way that Patrick prayed while enslaved in Ireland. But given what his life became, I don’t think it is a big leap to assume. And maybe, but this IS a stretch, he started that cliched Irish statement “Faith and Begorra.” Which is a shorted form of “By my faith” as in a way to live and “by God” which is choosing to put your trust in something beyond yourself and the hope to see beyond your current situation.
OK, it is a stretch. Trying to put too much meaning in a meaningless phrase. Sort of like pointing out that Goodbye is really a shortened form of God be with you. And when you say goodbye you are not just waving, but actually conferring a blessing, actually praying a prayer. Silly really. Sorry.
Well, then how about this final note on this St. Patrick’s Day - March 17th is not the day he was born, it was the day he died. So, Patrick is remembered not just for existing, but for giving himself away, for sacrificing because of a prayer.
But spare a thought for poor St. Patrick. First of all, kidnapped and taken across the Irish sea to a foreign land, forced into slavery for six years until he finally escaped. You know his heart was full of prayers in all that time. Had to be. Prayers for rescue, prayers for redemption, prayers for salvation.
Had to be. Because he went back. He went back because his heart was full of prayers. Prayers for rescue, prayers for redemption, prayers for salvation. Except this time they weren’t prayers for himself, but for the people he somehow - don’t even try to figure it out, it doesn’t make any earthly sense - the people he somehow learned to love. So much so that his life and work caused the people of Ireland to name him their Patron Saint.
An incredible story to be sure. Only made credible by the power of prayer. The power of the Spirit to work transformation in hearts. Patrick’s heart, certainly. And the heart of a nation.
“Real prayer,” writes Richard Foster in Celebration of Discipline, “is life creating and life changing. ... To pray is to change.” Our Spiritual Discipline of the week (or one of them anyway) is Prayer. And I got there by looking at Psalm 107. Now you almost have to look at it all to get the grand sweep of the psalm. And in worship we will try to unpack it a little bit more. Here I want to start with the lectionary passage. Take a look at the verses chosen this week:
Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, those he redeemed from trouble 3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south. ... Some were sick through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities endured affliction; 18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress; 20 he sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from destruction. 21 Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind. 22 And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices, and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.
Prayer. OK, the word prayer isn’t actually in those selected verses. All right, I’ll admit it, the word prayer doesn’t appear in any of the forty-three verses of Psalm 107. And, frankly, most commentators would say that Psalm 107 is about something completely different. Yet, if you look closely, you’ll have to admit that prayer permeates this psalm. Just substitute synonyms: give thanks - pray; cried to - prayed; thank the Lord - pray; offer thanksgiving sacrifices - pray. See? It is there.
More than that, the kind of transformation that Foster was talking about is there as well. From sickness to healing, from the brink of death to deliverance, and from desperation to thanksgiving. It is there. “To pray is to change,” says Foster and we can hear an “Amen” from the writer of Psalm 107.
In fact, this change is what Psalm 107 is really all about. If you take a wider look in the Psalm you will see a repeated theme. Verse 17 above says “Some were sick...” Verse 4 says “Some wandered in desert wastes...” Verse 10 says “Some sat in darkness and gloom...” Verse 23 says “Some went down to the sea ...” The psalm is full of folks in trouble, folks on the edge, folks dealing with difficult days. Folks in need of prayer, in other words.
Folks like Patrick. OK, I don’t know for sure in a fact check-able kind of way that Patrick prayed while enslaved in Ireland. But given what his life became, I don’t think it is a big leap to assume. And maybe, but this IS a stretch, he started that cliched Irish statement “Faith and Begorra.” Which is a shorted form of “By my faith” as in a way to live and “by God” which is choosing to put your trust in something beyond yourself and the hope to see beyond your current situation.
OK, it is a stretch. Trying to put too much meaning in a meaningless phrase. Sort of like pointing out that Goodbye is really a shortened form of God be with you. And when you say goodbye you are not just waving, but actually conferring a blessing, actually praying a prayer. Silly really. Sorry.
Well, then how about this final note on this St. Patrick’s Day - March 17th is not the day he was born, it was the day he died. So, Patrick is remembered not just for existing, but for giving himself away, for sacrificing because of a prayer.
Shalom,
Derek
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