Old Prayer, New Words

Photo by Olivia Snow on Unsplash


It has been a part of my life 

For as long 

As I can remember.  

I imagine 

That I first learned the words

As a child 

Around our family dinner table 

When we had family devotions

At the end of every day. 

But I also remember 

Hearing these words

Over 

And over 

And over

Again 

In Sunday school, 

Sunday worship, 

Bible camp, 

Confirmation – 

Regularly and often –

Petitions offered

Amid all of the chances 

And changes 

Of life. 

These words 

Are known 

By several different names 

Or phrases 

Within the family

Of the Christian faith –

The “Our Father,” 

The “Lord’s Prayer,” 

“The words that Jesus taught us to pray.”

They have been prayed

Millions,

And millions,

And millions of times.

I remember the first time

That I heard someone 

Use different words 

Amid the Lord’s Prayer 

Than those 

That I had memorized. 

It was jarring, 

Unsettling, 

Uncomfortable. 

I was at Bible camp, 

And in our cabins 

At the close of each day, 

We gathered 

For what we called 

“Candle power.” 

In our pajamas, 

Sitting together 

As cabin groups 

After a day of Bible study, 

Games,

Swimming,

Canoeing,

Worship,

Silly songs,

Campfire,

And everything else 

“Camp” that you can imagine –

We would –

Lay on our bellies

On our cabin floor,

Propped up on our elbows –

Candle burning in the center –

And talk about the day –

Or anything else

That was on our minds.

We would laugh together, 

and sometimes cry together, 

And we would always –

Always –

Conclude this time 

At the end of the day 

With a circle prayer 

that concluded 

With the Lord’s Prayer.

As I child,

I learned to pray 

“Forgive us our trespasses,” 

And there at camp,

In the dark of night

Around a candle 

In a cabin, 

One of the girls prayed 

“Forgive us our debts.” 

Debts.

That was new.

It startled me.

Caught me.

Stopped me.

Her voice –

This girl who said this new word –

Was clear 

And crisp 

And confident 

As she prayed, 

And as the unfamiliar word 

Rolled off of her tongue, 

Many of the rest of us 

Fell silent 

As she soldiered on in prayer. 

I can still recall my reaction. 

“What is she saying?”

I asked my internal self. 

“She’s saying the wrong words,” 

my internal self 

responded in protest.

Needless to say, 

The day was not done 

When we came 

To end of the prayer, 

As our wise 

And astute counselor --

Her name was Julianne –

Used our late-night prayer 

As a teaching moment,

A moment of care,

A moment of grace,

A moment to expand

Our understanding

Of ourselves,

Of one another,

The Bible,

Our faith,

The Church,

Our prayers,

And God.

As soon as the “amen” was spoken, 

Julianne said something like this:

“Wasn’t that great? 

How cool is it 

That there is 

More than one version 

Of the Lord’s Prayer?

Isn’t it neat
That we can learn 

New words 

To pray 

An old prayer?” 

Old prayer. 

New words. 

As a cabin, 

We talked 

Until late into that night 

About different translations

And different traditions

And different words 

And how God’s faithful people

Can learn from each other

About what God’s Word says 

And how God’s Word speaks

Into

And through 

Our lives. 

I think it was my first 

Truly ecumenical experience –

My first experience

Of the Church

In its

Width

And breadth

And height –

My first glimpse 

Of the ways

That we need 

Each other –

And each other’s words

And perspectives

And experiences of God

To help us

Grow

In our own 

Understanding 

And faith.

I was 12,

And the Lord’s Prayer

As it was known to me,

Became 

Something

New –

Living,

Dynamic,

And in-spiring

In a Holy Spirit

In-dwelling

Kind-of-way.

Since that late night

At camp 

So many years ago, 

I have come 

To appreciate 

More and more 

The words of faith 

That grow

Out of different traditions, 

Different experiences, 

And different cultures. 

I have come

To appreciate 

The various 

Translations of the Bible 

As I have learned 

That every translation 

Is –

indeed –

An interpretation, 

And with various translations 

We can,

In fact, 

Gain a deeper 

And richer 

And more alive

Understanding 

Of what the Bible 

Has to say

To God’s people

Across time,

And places,

And experiences.

I have especially 

Come to appreciate 

The various translations

Of the “Our Father,” 

And I love 

Gathering in worship 

And hearing

Many different voices 

Praying 

At the same time 

In different languages 

And translations –

Each one

Having chosen 

At that moment 

To pray 

In the language 

Or translation their own heart.

As my spouse and I 

Continue

To pray Compline

At the close of each day,

We have chosen

To use the version

From A New Zealand Prayer Book.

It is familiar,

And yet 

It is new.

It follows the rhythm

That grounds us

And roots us

In that which we know,

And at the same time,

It uses words,

Phrases,

And nuances of language

That to our ears

And our hearts

Are new.

This is especially true for 

“Lord’s Prayer” 

And,

Truth be told –

That is why

We chose

This version of Compline

For this particular season

In our own lives,

And in the life of the world.

It is, 

For us,

The essence of 

Old Prayer.

New Words.

It seems to capture,

The depth

And the pain

And the sorrow

Of our own

Yearning and need

And God’s unshakeable grace

In ways that

Allow us to 

Sleep at night

And rise

To meet the new day.

“Eternal Spirit,

Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,

Source of all that is and that shall be,

Father and Mother of us all,

Loving God, in whom is heaven:

The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!

The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of the world!

Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!

Your commonwealth of peace and freedom

Sustain our hope and come on earth.

With the bread we need for today, feed us.

In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.

In times of temptation and testing, strengthen us.

From trials too great to endure, spare us.

From the grip of all that is evil, free us.

For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever. Amen.”

May these new words

Of this old prayer 

Breathe inspiration 

Into your own heart 

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And mind 

As you lift 

The burdens of the world,

The cares of your hearts,

And the joys of your lives 

Before the One who is indeed –

Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver

Trusting that this same One

Does indeed,

Reign

In the glory

Of the power

That is Love.

Now.

And forever.

Old Prayer.

New Words.

Immeasurable grace.


Rev. Dr. Charlene Rachuy Cox

Rev. Dr. Charlene Rachuy Cox (affectionately known as “Char”) holds a Doctor of Ministry Degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, with an emphasis in Spirituality; a Master of Sacred Theology Degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, with an emphasis in Preaching and Worship, a Master of Divinity Degree from Luther Seminary, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Augustana University, Sioux Falls. She has served as a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for over 28 years, serving in seminary, collegiate, and congregational settings. She loves reading – especially memoirs and historical fiction, and enjoys writing poetry, traveling, and all things winter.

Facebook | PrChar

Website | Charlene Rachuy Cox

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