Praying at Home Today: Wednesday 5 May 2021
Praying at home today:
Jesus the bridge-builder
A warm welcome to PrayingAtHome.com, where you can find worship resources for praying at home today or wherever you are.
We hope these readings, prayers, music and the short reflection will help you stay in touch with the Church and to sustain you on your journey through life.
If this is your first visit to this website, then you might like to read about the common elements and the suggested structure for each day’s prayer.
Everything’s optional!
Opening to the Word
You can spend a few moments in silence,
focussing on your breathing
to become more mindful of the present moment
and to open yourself more fully
to God’s presence within you.
Christ is risen, alleluia.
He is risen indeed, alleluia.
Short reading
Then we will never turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call on your name.Et non discedimus a te:
vivificabis nos, et nomen tuum invocabimus.Alors nous ne nous éloignerons plus de toi.
Fais-nous revivre et nous ferons appel à ton nom!
Psalm 79(80):18
The Liturgy of the Word
Here are today’s Bible readings.
You can read just one, or all three if you have time.
One link to all three readings
Separate links to each reading
Short Reflection
Our Gospel reading today is part of John’s Last Supper discourse, immediately before the section we heard on Sunday about the True Vine.
Our interconnectedness is a crucial element of our humanity. As John Donne wrote, “No man is an island”.
Interestingly, however, Paul Simon takes an opposite view in his song “I am a rock” (see the lyrics here).
There is a useful commentary on the lyrics on Paul Wieder’s Every Single Paul Simon Song blog.
Isolation is a very real problem, especially in this current time. In future years, decades and centuries, people will look back at how we handled this crisis.
Did we allow SARS-CoV-2 to take over our lives, encouraging a me-first approach (as has happened, at least to some extent, with the Covid-19 vaccines)?
Or are we standing up for one another, unselfishly helping others?
What have I done?
Have I retreated into my castle walls with its protections or have I gone out into the snow, to help others?
This song serves as a warning and a challenge, as do Jesus’ words:
Rise, let us be on our way.
John 14:31b
Perhaps, for a change, we can let Paul Simon have the last word.
He had been listening to a great deal of Gospel music at this time, including a line sung by Rev Claude Jeter referring to Jesus as the bridge over deep water if we trust in his name (a well-beloved image of Jesus):
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind.
Bridge over Troubled Water
(commentary)
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Music for reflection
Prayer Suggestions
Before they call I will answer,
while they are yet speaking I will hear.
Isaiah 65:24
We pray at home today for the needs of our world.
- For the isolated
that they may experience God’s presence - for those who work in mental health
- for the victims in Mexico City
- for El Salvador, Palestine and Afghanistan
- for all affected by the climate emergency.
(In Holy Trinity, Stirling, we invite you to pray today
for Revd Christoph Wutscher, our Rector.)
For all who have asked for our prayers.
a moment of silence
Pray for us all
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
We can say the Lord’s Prayer in any language or version we choose.
Here it is, in English, Latin and French.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.
Amen.
Pater noster, qui es in cælis;
sanctificetur nomen tuum:
adveniat regnum tuum;
fiat voluntas tua,
sicut in cælo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie:
et dimitte nobis debita nostra,
sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris:
et ne nos inducas in tentationem:
sed libera nos a malo.
Quia tuum est regnum,
et potestas, et gloria, in saecula.
Amen.
Notre Père, qui es aux cieux,
que ton nom soit sanctifié,
que ton règne vienne,
que ta volonté soit faite sur la terre comme au ciel.
Donne-nous aujourd’hui notre pain de ce jour.
Pardonne-nous nos offenses,
comme nous pardonnons aussi à ceux qui nous ont offensés.
Et ne nous laisse pas entrer en tentation
mais délivre-nous du Mal.
Car c’est à toi qu’appartiennent le règne,
la puissance et la gloire
pour les siècles des siècles. Amen.
Concluding prayer
O God,
who alone can bring harmony to the minds of your faithful people:
give us grace to love the things you command,
and to desire the things you promise;
that, amid the uncertain changes of this world,
our hearts may be firmly fixed where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
world without end.
Amen.
Returning to the world
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Alleluia.
Benedicamus Domino.
Deo gratias.
Alleluia.
Thank you for joining us in praying at home.
Oremus pro invicem.
In these strange times, we are called to trust
* You can find more organ music from Holy Trinity Church, Stirling
on Alistair Warwick‘s website and on SoundCloud
There are several books by Brother Roger of the Taizé Community from many booksellers.
You can buy The Complete Chronicles of Narnia at Bookshop.org
Other worship resources
Praying at Home Today: Acknowledgements
The lectionary for weekdays is taken from the Vanderbilt Divinity Library.
In that lectionary, the readings are in the following order: Old Testament reading, Psalm, New Testament reading; we have changed the order to the more usual OT, Psalm and NT.
English Bible texts are usually from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Latin Bible texts are from Biblia Sacra Vulgata, and are in the Public Domain.
French Bible texts are usually from Version Segond 21, copyright © 2007 Société Biblique de Genève by Société Biblique de Genève.
Images, unless otherwise stated, are from lockdown in Scotland, by Alistair Warwick.
Music engraved by The Art of Music.
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