The Sacred and Everyday

Yesterday I lifted up part of a prayer attributed to Saint Patrick. Lately, I have been drawn to ancient Christian Celtic spirituality — maybe in part because of its emphasis on Christ’s presence infused within all of creation, including within and around you and me. I also appreciate the way in which it holds together the eternal and temporal, the sacred and the everyday. There is no real divide.

In this tradition, prayer and work, prayer and life, go hand in hand. There are ritual prayers to be said or sung all throughout the course of one’s day. For example, each morning, washing their faces with three splashes of water, they would say:

The palmful of the God of Life.

The palmful of the Christ of Love,

The palmful of the Spirit of Peace,

Triune. Of Grace.

Try that one tomorrow morning!

To have prayer scattered throughout the day is a powerful reminder that all of life belongs to God and there is no place outside the bounds of his loving presence.

Today, I leave you with one more prayer from the Outer Hebrides Islands in Scotland.

Let us pray:

God with me lying down,

God with me rising up,

God with me in each ray of light,

Nor I a ray of joy without Him,

Nor one ray without Him.

Christ with me sleeping,

Christ with me waking,

Christ with me watching,

Every day and night,

Every day and night.

God with me protecting,

The Lord with me directing,

The Spirit with me strengthening,

Forever and evermore,

Ever and evermore. Amen.

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