Epiphany 2, Year B 2021: Litany for Truth-Tellers

January 12, 2021 Fran Pratt

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Y’all. I can’t make this up. This is the lectionary for this week.

Synopsis of 1 Samuel 3 and the preceding events:

Eli the priest has scoundrels for sons. His sons are, by their lineage, also priests; they are thieving and lying and raping - doing immeasurable damage to the priesthood and the nation - and Eli, though he pleads with them, cannot (will not?) control nor contain them. They are allowed to wreak havoc. A “man of God” gives Eli a message that his sons have doomed their whole family to destruction and penury.

Young Samuel is Eli’s acolyte. God isn’t often heard from, but one night Samuel hears a voice, which he and Eli figure out to be the voice of God. God gives Samuel a message: Eli’s family will be punished for the iniquity of the scoundrel sons - they’ll lose everything, confirming the other, earlier message.

Samuel is hesitant to tell his mentor the bad news - that injustice will and must be held accountable, if not by the priesthood, if not by the society, then by God; that the ones who have lied and thieved and assaulted WILL be held responsible. But he tells Eli the truth of the prophecy God has given him. Eli meets it with acceptance, and Samuel gains a reputation as a Truth-Teller.

Flip to the Gospel reading from John 1….

Jesus is in the process of gathering disciples. He’s got Philip, Andrew, and Peter. And from a distance he sees Nathanael. Jesus immediately identifies Nathanael as “an Israelite in whom there is no deceit,” as a Truth-Teller. Nathanael is a Truth-Teller and Jesus wants him.

Aaaand relate it to today...

Last week we had a mob, incited by the lies of political leaders and conspiracy theories, ransack the US Capitol, killing 5 humans, endangering countless others, and proving that years of lies and deceit are bearing evil fruit and that, like the sons of Eli, those responsible must be contained and held accountable lest they bring the whole country down into their eventual destruction. OK!

I wait to see what will be done. I pray that faith communities will awaken to their duty as Truth-Tellers. And that we, as individuals, will be those “in whom there is no deceit.” Our theology matters, and conflating the message and work of Christ with deceitful narratives of Christian Nationalism, Christo-fascism, White Supremacy, and violence is bad theology that leads to harm.

This litany is inspired by these texts, but I have thrown a lot of other references in.

God, we pray for our faith community,
As a whole and as individuals,
That we will have the courage to hold fast to truth,
Even when truth is inconvenient,
Even when truth convicts us,
Even when truth is difficult,
Even when truth is not what we’d hoped,
Even when truth is hard to tell …

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Advent Week 4, Year B: Disruption & consent

December 9, 2020 Fran Pratt

This litany is based entirely on the account in Luke 1 of the angel Gabriel’s visitation to young Mary. Mary gives consent to the action of the spirit of God upon her body, to bear the image of God out into the world, and to allow her plans and her life to be utterly disrupted by this work.

There is a moment
When the spinning of the earth
And the twinkling of stars
And the rushing of winds
And all movement
And all buzzing
And all frenzy
Stops….

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Proper 16 (Year A): Litany for Renewing the Mind

August 18, 2020 Fran Pratt

This litany follows the Lectionary texts for Proper 16 of Ordinary time in Year A. I added references to 1 Corinthians 2 and, as ever, Luke 1. I would also like to call attention to the story of the Hebrew Midwives in Exodus 1, which is also part of this week's readings, and for which I have an accompanying litany - it happens to be one of my favorite I've ever written: Litany for the Midwives.

God, we are in a time of upheaval:
Political,
Spiritual,
Religious,
Cultural,
Ecological.
Many suffer for lack of stability and resources
Support, care, and services…

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Litany for No More War

January 6, 2020 Fran Pratt

On this Epiphany day, please join Red Letter Christians today in a prayer vigil at 6pm (in your timezone). If you can’t attend a larger gathering, grab whomever you live with or nearby, light a candle, share a moment of silence and #prayforpeace. This litany may be used (with attribution, please) in any prayer gathering focused on peace. Please share and pray. #nowarwithiran

We must cultivate peace in our own hearts first, allowing the Peace of Christ to root there. This is our work as we pray for peace in the whole earth.

God, we come now to cultivate peace in our hearts
That it may reverberate outward.
We ask that the Peace of Christ,
The peace beyond understanding,
The peace that blesses enemies,
The peace that turns the other cheek,
The peace that leaves vengeance in your hands,
The peace that seeks empathy,
The peace that practices justice and compassion,
The peace that dissolves ego -

This baffling and impossible possibility,
This radical peace,
Would rest upon the whole world now,
At home in our hearts, and abroad.

We do not want to witness more loss of life,
More destruction of homes and livelihoods,
More degradation of land and waterways,
More human suffering.

We do not come to peace lightly.
We know that true peace disrupts violent patterns.
We are not expecting convenience or ease.
And still, we want true peace;
That our nation may know no more war,
And our children inherit no more suffering.

Oh God, put a stop to war [with Iran] before it begins.
Raise up peace in the hearts of war-mongers,
Let the egos of the violent be silenced,
And let us move into a more beautiful future;
Our feet firm and confident on the Path of Peace (1),
Our words and actions rooted in the Peace of Christ.

Amen

Luke 1:79

Advent Week 4 (Year A): Litany for Mother and Child

December 17, 2019 Fran Pratt

Hi! As you may have noticed,
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This is part of my effort to make 2019 a #yearofwritingsustainably
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You can find archived litanies here, and purchase my book here.

I had trouble keeping this litany as brief as it is. There's so much wisdom and depth in the story of the Mother. In the way human salvation from humanity's misperceptions and misdeeds, this great Correction of Our Understanding, came from within a human body. The wisdom came from within. The Divinity came from within. From a place that might have been overlooked or forgotten: the belly of a girl with no power, no influence, no streams of income, no security.

And yet, her "soul rejoices in God her savior." And her song in Luke 1 gives us a grand poetic account of her transformed (saved) understanding. Within her gut Wisdom grows; Word is made flesh; Love gains body. And she BIRTHS it out into the world! Human salvation (by this I mean: setting a-right, justice, redemption from oppression and power hierarchy - not some measly personal salvation from after-life "hell" we usually hear about) begins in the belly of divinely touched humanity!!

Gosh, I could go on and on. I hope it's enough.

God, we are not satisfied*
Not with the way things are,
Not with the direction things are headed,
Not with the status quo…

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Advent Week 3 (Year A): Litany for Desert and Crocus

December 9, 2019 Fran Pratt

“The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing” (Isaiah 35:1)

This week’s Advent Litany is inspired by the Lectionary passages from Isaiah 35 and Mary’s Magnificat in the first chapter of Luke.

God, from barren things
We never expected fruit.
From dry ground
We didn’t expect shade….

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Reign of Christ (Year C): Litany for Christ's Mercy

November 21, 2019 Fran Pratt

Here’s a litany for Reign of Christ Sunday, the last week of the liturgical year. The culmination of all that has come before. Next week, we start over with Year A and the new 3-year cycle. I’m proud of the work I’ve done and the liturgy I’ve produced over these 3 years. I’ve officially now covered an entire Lectionary cycle of modern litanies. My hope is that this work serves the Church Universal, both those who consider themselves part of it, and those that don’t. This is an accomplishment and I’m taking a deep breath of gratitude this week as I pause and think toward Advent and a new 3-year pattern.

God, for so long, we had you all wrong.
We thought you were nit-picky and contentious.
Quick to punish, full of wrath,
Full of impossible standards.

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Advent Week 4 (Year C): Look Up, There’s Love

December 10, 2018 Fran Pratt

Mary’s Magnificat is part of the Lectionary selection for week 4 of Advent. One of the most beautiful and stirring prayers in scripture, spoken by a young woman of humble origin, accepting a dangerous long-term mission with gratitude, grit, and grace.

God, you are mighty in Love
You have done great things for us:
Lifted up the lowly
Filled the hungry with good things.
You have helped us
And showed us what mercy looks like (Luke 1:52-54);

Mercy has gathered bone and sinew.
Love has taken on flesh,
Saving us from heartless wandering
And merciless suffering.

Love’s Ambassador showed up and invited us
Into the work of building outposts,
Enclaves of lovingkindness,
Starting within our own hearts.

The work begins within us:
The Community of God grows within our beings
And blossoms outward to other people,
To become a network of love,
Blanketing the world:
Each intersection a soul.

We have only to wait a bit now,
While the momentum builds.
The day is coming
When love will reach a critical mass
And its reality will overtake fear.
All our waiting and working will be complete.

We thank you, oh God,
For the gift of Love within us.

Amen