Prayer

     I’ve been praying a lot recently, more even than usual. I’m also reading a book about prayer; how to pray, specifically. In learning to pray The Lord's Prayer, the prayer that Jesus taught us all, with greater intentionality and purpose I find every line new and fresh although I have been repeating this prayer, over and over, my whole life through. In times of need, fear, loss, sadness and joy this uncomplicated exhortation covers all the bases and yet children can learn it, simply and easily.

     What I also find interesting today is that the commandment given by Jesus to treat others as you yourself would want to be treated, which is in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, is not a concept specific to Judeo Christian religions only but exists in so many different religions and cultures in the world. A handout from the Surrey Interfaith Council beautifully illustrates what we call "the Golden Rule" or "the summary of the Law and the Prophets, representing a core Christian ethic of love, reciprocity, and proactive kindness" according to Google and the equivalent concept in various other religions.

     These are hard times, full of division and hatred, greed and contempt, war and loss and yet rather than feeling that we stand alone in our beliefs we can realize that others hold this core value as central to their beliefs as much as we do. I pray that all of us, myself included, would recognize that a wish for peace and harmony is a heartfelt hope that we all hold deep in the recesses of our human souls, if we only search for it. And pray.