One of the main criticisms of liturgical or common prayer is that it quickly becomes rote. As though if it’s read from a page, it can’t be from the heart; and if it’s not from the heart, it’s just the kind of vain repetition Jesus warned us against (Matthew 6.7). What this argument fails to take into account, however, is that extemporaneous prayers, while ‘from the heart’, are often totally dominated by our immediate concerns, and can therefore often centre us instead of the God to whom we’re praying. They make our thoughts, feelings, and circumstances what is ‘real’, rather than God. Because of this, liturgical prayers cab be helpful in resetting the narratives in our mind, and in re-situating those same thoughts, feelings, and circumstances within the bigger narrative of our faith.
I think of this especially whenever I pick up any of the prayer services from the Eastern Orthodox tradition. All things being equal, these services begin with what they call ‘the normal beginning’, a set opening sequence of prayers:
- “Glory to You, O God, Glory to You”
- O Heavenly King
- Trisagion
- “Glory to the Father …”
- “All-holy Trinity, have mercy …”
- Kyrie Eleison
- “Glory to the Father …”
- The Lord’s Prayer
Think about this; the opening words of your prayer in this tradition, no matter what your circumstances, are the same. And specifically, they are words giving glory to God. You just got promoted? “Glory to You, O God, Glory to You!” Your house just burned down? “Glory to You, O God, Glory to You!” A clean bill of health? “Glory to You, O God, Glory to You!” A terminal diagnosis? “Glory to You, O God, Glory to You!”
Talk about resetting the narrative!
The prayers continue with O Heavenly King, an invocation of the Holy Spirit which we’ll reflect upon tomorrow. But then it continues with the God-focused prayer:
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (x3)
Glory the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and unto ages of ages, Amen.
All-holy Trinity, have mercy on us; Lord, cleanse us from our sin;
Master, pardon our transgressions;
Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Your Name’s sake.
Lord have mercy (X3)
Glory the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and unto ages of ages, Amen.
See how these prayers focus again on praising God. God’s glory is the beginning and end, and the foundation of our prayer. But that doesn’t mean our concerns are absent. In between these praises, we also have prayers for mercy, forgiveness, and healing — prayers which cover the whole gamut of matters of the heart. But, when we pray these prayers, we centre our belief in a good, loving, infinitely creative, and infinitely glorious God. This is the kind of God who can meet us in our circumstances, our desires and needs.
For me this is a wonderful reminder, not that my thoughts and feelings, and anxieties of the moment aren’t important, but that they aren’t the end all, be all. All too often, they’re just what Brené Brown calls ‘shitty first drafts’, narratives that need to be placed in the wider story of my life and faith.
Glory to You, O God, Glory to You! Amen.
Matthew Root 