Silent Sunday
Falling Open
The theme for this Silent Sunday is the invitation to fall open rather than constricting and hardening ourselves in response to the challenges of life.
Opening music:
Lyrics:
Oh, my children, come to me
Oh, my children, come to me
Oh, my children, children, oh children, children
Come to me, come to me, come to me
And I will hold you, come to me
I will hold you, come to me
I will hold you, hold you, oh hold you, hold you
Come to me, come to me, come to me
And will you hold me? Come to me
Will you hold me? Come to me
Will you hold me, hold me, oh hold me, hold me
Come to me, come to me, come to me
Introduction Talk:
Quiet Prayer
You can choose between a 10 and a 20 minute time of quiet prayer using the links below. If you find your mind wandering, gently let go of your thoughts and return to being present and open, through awareness of your breath or your sacred word.
Listen to the following music as an ending to the time of prayer:
Lyrics:
Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you.
Everything changes, I alone remain.
Hold patience, for nothing is wasted,
Presence in all things, I'm with you in all things.
Sacred Reading:
Read the following reading through twice or three times, with an attitude of open receptivity. Allow a few minutes of silence between the readings. Listen for any words that call out to you, or that draw you into the sacredness of silence that is deeper than your usual knowing:
Psalm 106 extracts
Giver of Life, we pray for the gift of wisdom, that the motivations of our heart may be made pure.
May we walk with faith all the days of our life – confident in your Divine Presence,
even in times of trouble, and with assurance for what is and all that is to be;
May we have faith in the unfolding of our lives, and radical trust in the universe!
Awaken us to the Oneness of all things, to the beauty and truth of Unity.
May we become aware of the interdependence of all things,
and come to know You in every thing, and all things in You.
For as we attune to your Presence within us, we know not separation,
and joy becomes our dwelling place.
Quiet us, O Silent Speaker, that out of still spaces we may hear your Word;
And, as we ponder the immensity of your gift to us of Life, awe and wonder fill our hearts.
May we embrace Creation as a whole, and become attuned to all the world;
May we be blessing, and see divinity in the within and the without of all things.
As our hearts are awakened to your Presence within us,
we are led back to the Source of all life.
(from Psalms for Praying, by Nan Merrill)
Meditation Walk:
Take a walk somewhere where you can open yourself to some part of nature, letting go of your self protective thoughts, any commentary or naming or labeling, and open yourself to this eternal moment, this Divine Presence in whom we all live and move and have our being. Invite the “celestial messengers” to call you home into sacred silence, presence, wonder and freshness.
For Further Reflection:
Below are the quotes from the talk for you to reflect further on this theme.
John 17:21 "that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Abba, and I am in you."
Romans 8:38 "nothing can separate us from the love of God, not trouble, persecution , neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love."
Thomas Merton: "in moments of silence, of meditation, of enlightenment and peace, one learns to be silent and alone everywhere. . . . One opens the inner door of the heart to the infinite silences of the Spirit, out of whose abysses love wells up without fail and gives itself to all. In this Silence, the meaning of every sound is finally clear. Only in this Silence can the truth of words be distinguished, not in their separateness, but in their pointing to the central unity of Love. All words, then, say one thing only: that all is Love." (from Love and Living)
Evelyn Underhill: "Eternity is with us, inviting our contemplation perpetually, but we are too frightened, lazy, and suspicious to respond; too arrogant to still our thought, and let divine sensation have its way. It needs industry and goodwill (intentional vigilance) if we would make that transition; for the process involves a veritable spring-cleaning of the soul, a turning-out and rearrangement of our mental furniture, a wide opening of closed windows, that the notes of the wild birds beyond our garden may come to us fully charged with wonder and freshness, and drown with their music the noise of the gramophone within. Those who do this, discover that they have lived in a stuffy world, whilst their inheritance was a world of morning-glory: where every tit-mouse is a celestial messenger, and every thrusting bud is charged with the full significance of life."
Ending prayer: (continuation of Psalm 106)
Teach us, O Beloved, to be patient with ourselves, that we might offer the gift of patience to others;
May we learn to be calm, to persevere with utter trust as we face the fears that bind us.
Breath of the Merciful, teach us the way of compassion,
that we may heed the cries of the poor;
That we may be merciful to those who live in the bonds of prison, illness and loneliness;
And, may we be strong voices in support of justice.
May our lives be for healing,
May our lives be for peace.
Amen.
Ending music:
Lyrics:
By breath, by blood, by body, by spirit, we are all one.
The air that is my breath is the air that you are breathing
And the air that is your breath is the air that I am breathing
The wind rising in my breast is the wind from the east, from the west
From the north, from the south, breathing in, breathing out
The water that is my blood, my sweat, tears from crying
Is the water that is your blood, your sweat, tears from crying
And the rising of the tide is in our veins and in the ocean wide
We are in the rising steam, rushing river, running stream
The earth is dust, the earth is clay, flow’rs blossoming and fading
We are dust and we are clay, we are blossoming and fading
Every color, every sound, every place is holy ground
Oh, every living thing, can you hear it laugh? Can you hear it sing?
The fire in my heart, my soul flame burning
Is the fire in your heart, your soul flame burning
We are Spirit burning bright, by the light of day, in the dark of night
We are shining like the sun, and like the moon, like the Holy One.
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Sharon's book that was previously called "Contemplative Living" has been republished by AnamChara Books under the title "Deeper: Finding the Depth Dimension Beneath the Surface of Life". The Kindle version is available from Amazon, and the hard copy version can be ordered from loot.co.za or Takealot, or from your local bookshop through Ingram Distribution.