John H Armstrong

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

There is a long history behind the worldwide call to prayer for Christian unity but I became acutely aware of the history of this call at the Center for Unity in Rome last March. Then in June, about an hour north of New York City,  I visited the grave site of Fr. Paul Wattson, the man who launched this global week of prayer for Christian unity. As deeply interested as I am in this subject I am pleased to share news today from the Vatican Information Service of January 18. The Pope's comments provide a gracious reminder of our common duty to the whole of Christ's Church, not just our own communion or fellowship. 

INVOKING THE GIFT OF UNITY AMONG CHRISTIANS

VATICAN CITY, 18 JAN 2012 (VIS) - The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which begins today, was the theme of Benedict XVI's general audience celebrated this morning in the Paul VI Hall. The Holy Father explained how this initiative has been held annually for more than a century and brings together Christians from Churches and ecclesial communities, who "invoke that extraordinary gift for which the Lord Jesus prayed during the Last Supper: . . . 'That they may all be one.'"

The Week of Prayer - established in 1908 by Paul Wattson, founder of an Anglican religious community who later entered the Catholic Church - "is one of the most effective annual expressions . . . of the impetus which Vatican Council II gave to the search for full union among all Christ's disciples", said the Pope. "This spiritual event, which unites Christians from all traditions, increases our awareness of the fact that the unity we strive for cannot result merely from our own efforts; rather, it is a gift we receive and must constantly invoke from on high."

The texts for this year's Week of Prayer have been prepared by a group of representatives from the Catholic Church, and from the Polish Ecumenical Council which proposed the theme of "We will all be changed by the victory of our Lord Jesus Christ." The history of Poland - marked by defeats and victories, by the struggle to end oppression and achieve freedom - led the ecumenical group to reflect more deeply upon what it means to "win" and to "lose."

In this context the Pope pointed out that, "in contrast to 'victory' understood in triumphal terms, Christ shows us a very different way. His victory does not involve power and might. . . . Christ speaks of victory through love, mutual assistance and boosting the self-esteem of those who are 'last', forgotten, excluded. For all Christians, the best expression of such humble service is Jesus Christ Himself, His total gift of self, the victory of His love over death. . . . We can share in this 'victory' only if we allow ourselves to be transformed by God."

Likewise, "the unity for which we pray requires inner conversion, both shared and individual. But this must not be limited to cordiality and cooperation; we must reinforce our faith in God; ... we must enter into the new life in Christ, Who is our true and definitive victory; we must open to one another, accepting all the elements of unity which God has conserved for us; . . . we must feel the pressing need to bear witness, before the men and women of our time, to the living God Who made Himself known in Christ."

Ecumenism, as defined by Vatican Council II and Blessed John Paul II, is "the responsibility of the entire Church and of all the baptised, who must augment the partial communion that already exists among Christians until achieving full communion in truth and charity. Praying for unity . . . must then be an integral part of the prayer life of all Christians, in all times and places, especially when people from different traditions come together to work for victory in Christ over sin, evil, injustice and the violation of human dignity."

Benedict XVI also pointed out that "lack of unity among Christians hinders the effective announcement of the Gospel and endangers our credibility," but noted that, "as far as the fundamental truths of the faith are concerned, there is far more that unites us than divides us. . . . This is a great challenge for the new evangelisation, which will be more fruitful if all Christians together announce the truth of the Gospel and Jesus Christ, and give a joint response to the spiritual thirst of our times."

In conclusion, the Pope exhorted the faithful to unite more intensely in prayer during the course of the coming Week, "to increase shared witness, solidarity and collaboration among Christians, in expectation of that glorious day when together we will all be able to celebrate the Sacraments and profess the faith transmitted by the Apostles."

 

The Promise of Rivers

In John 7 our Lord visits Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles. John 7:1-10:21 covers a period of only eight days. But what an amazing eight days it was in terms of our Lord's mission and what he revealed. People had all kinds of responses to Jesus during these days of his flesh. Some thought him mentally deranged (7:20) while others thought he was the promised Messiah (7:31, 40). Verse 1 says the religious leaders sought to kill him. We should not read this as if all the Jews, in some general way, wanted him dead. Jesus taught in the temple and attracted a great deal of public attention. The response was truly varied as the text indicates.

The Feast of Tabernacles was an eight-day harvest festival commemorating the time when Israel walked in the wilderness of Sinai and lived in tents. Along with Passover and Pentecost this was one of the big three in Israel's liturgical remembrance. In later times water would be mixed with wine and poured at the base of the altar, both as purification and as a remembrance of the water flowing from the rock that Moses had struck. In the midst of this celebration John records the following:

³⁷ On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. ³⁸ Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." An alternative way of reading 7:38 (in the NIV 2011) is: "Or me. And let anyone drink who believes in me.” As Scripture has said, “Out of him (or them) will flow rivers of living water.”

I've thought about these words for at least fifty years, maybe more. I believe the correct way to understand this promise is to grasp the practice and importance of contemplation. Simply put, only those who thirst will be given this living water which will flow out of their innermost being. In the same way those who hunger will receive the imperishable food that satisfies. But this desire must be right desire. Right desire is human desire that is stripped of self, or better put, stripped of all self-seeking. Heartfelt desire for God can overcome our weakness, even our negligence. This seems to be what Jesus means by his words to the woman in Luke 7:47 who gave an extravagant gift to him. Without deep desire little progress can be made in the realm of the spirit. Without thirst we will not desire the water of life, the inner working of the Spirit. And without desire we will never contemplate the mystery of the Trinity who lives in us.

We stifle this desire in many ways. For most of us it is busyness. Constant talking and endless activity hinders us and we become satisfied with a sip of water here and there. For me my activity became a form of escapism over the years. I feared silence and solitude precisely because I feared seeing my inner poverty for what it really was. But God gently and lovingly drove me to seek him more and more. Psalm 42:1 is a growing experience: "As the deer pants after the living water, so my soul pants for you, O God."

In ancient Palestine "water" was understood as living if it was "alive" with freshness and purity. In the ancient Scriptures living water was the symbol of the Holy Spirit. The apostle says that the Spirit has been "poured forth into our hearts" (Galatians 4:6). The saints and mystics have always understood this living water as the gift of the Spirit in creating contemplative stillness and prayer within us. When this happens then the water that Jesus put within us will "flow" freely out of us. Theresa of Avila said we will become thirsty for this thirst. Thomas Aquinas said Jesus does not give us the higher gifts of the Spirit (love comes to mind here) because we do not desire them deeply enough nor do we truly ask for them. He will not withhold the Spirit from those who ask and pray for such rivers to flow. I wish I had understood this much sooner. But then I am not so sure that some decades of life experience were necessary to reach this place in the journey.

Practicing Mental Prayer

Once we realize that prayer is “friendly intercourse” with God, rooted in his deep love for us, we can begin to talk about the method for how we do this. I offer, based upon my own reading of various spiritual directors and great theologians, some observations on how to pray in this way.

First, we cannot speak to God “intimately” unless we are in contact with him personally. This doesn’t just happen in conversion but daily as we approach him directly. Because we are in personal contact with God we make preparation. This is not a matter of human works offered up to save us in any sense of the word. It is our placing ourselves in the presence of God, turning ourselves to him by means of true godly thoughts. I begin to relate to God more intimately when I place myself in his presence, turning aside to him by means of good thoughts. This includes both biblical words and insights from other Christian teachers who thought deeply about the Word of God.

Second, to prepare we must again and again convince ourselves that God loves us. During my early days I always wondered, “Have I been truly saved?” Maybe I’d not done something right. Maybe I needed to walk forward and “rededicate” myself. Then after I came to appreciate much of the Reformed confessional tradition I wondered, at times, “Am I among the elect?” And, “Did Jesus really die for me?” How do I know for sure? More confusion followed. Now I know that unless I am fully persuaded that God loves me then I will never pray as intimately and personally as I should. This is why “friendly intercourse” with God is so precious to me.

In order to know that God loves me I choose readings, from the Bible and other wonderful treasures rooted in the Bible, that reveal his love to me. But reading is not enough.

Third, I must meditate by reflecting upon this truth. God loves me. He really does love me. This is the greatest truth in all the world. I must chew this and digest it and revel in it. All revealed truth can manifest God’s love to me but each day I try to get hold of one reading that does this for me. I make direct use of various thoughts contained in things I choose to meditate upon in quietness. My goal is always to convince my heart that God really does love me. What often happens is that this love springs up spontaneously in my heart after some time alone.

Fourth, there begins a colloquy, or a dialog with God. I tell God, with whatever words spring to my heart, how much I love him, how much I want to love him even more and that I desire to advance in his holy love this very day. I also tell him that I want to demonstrate his holy love in my actions this day by doing his will.

Fifth, I come to the center of real prayer. This is the heart of it all. In order to facilitate the dialog I do three things:

1. Give thanks. I not only tell God I love him but I thank him for all the benefits and blessings that he has given to me. “Count your blessings, name them one by one . . .”

2. Offering. Aware of all my blessings I ask God what I can give to him? He does not need anything from me but as my heavenly Father he loves to receive my good resolution and my decision to give. What can I do this day to show my gratitude to him?

3. Petition. The consciousness of my weakness and humanness prompts me to then pray for divine help.

You can practice mental prayer without the last three acts but they fill out the practice and make it applicable to every aspect of my daily life.

When my soul freely reflects upon a text read, a thought pondered, I can pass into dialog, or colloquy. This is at the heart of the process of mental prayer. As for tools that specifically help me I just keep looking and finding an incredible treasure of ancient and modern resources. Here I draw from the whole Christian tradition—Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant. Here ecumenism deepens my sense of the whole church throughout all the ages seeking the same God who loves me in this place, right now.

Learning the Practice of Mental Prayer

The great saints and writers of the Christian church all have much to teach us. I embarked upon reading some of the classic writings of the historic church some years ago and my only regret is that it took me this long. One such writer is St. Teresa.

Saint Teresa of Ávila (1515 – 1582) was a prominent Spanish mystic and Carmelite nun. She was a theologian of contemplative life through mental prayer. She is considered to be, along with John of the Cross, a founder of the Discalced Carmelites.

One of St. Teresa’s most important contributions to the spiritual life of the church came though her teaching on mental prayer. This is how I discovered her writings to be so truly helpful in my journey.

But what is mental prayer?

Mental prayer is a form of prayer in which one loves God through dialog and by meditating on God's words. It is a time of silence focused on God. It is distinguished from vocal prayers which use set prayers, although mental prayer can proceed by using vocal prayers in order to improve dialogue with God. St. Teresa put it this way: "Mental prayer [oración/mental] is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us." Since the emphasis is on love rather than thought, modern authors recommend that it be called interior prayer.

Mother Theresa wrote of mental prayer: "We must never forget that we are bound to perfection and should aim ceaselessly for it. The practice of mental prayer is necessary to reach that goal. Because it is the breath of life for our soul, holiness is impossible without it. It is only in mental prayer and spiritual reading that we cultivate the gift of prayer. Mental prayer is greatly fostered by simplicity—that is forgetfulness of self and of the body and of the sense, and by frequent aspirations that feed our prayer.

St. Teresa says that mental prayer is really “friendly intercourse and frequent solitary converse with Him who we know loves us.” By this St. Teresa reveals the affective spirit of mental prayer, which I believe is its special characteristic. It is, as she rightly says, “friendly intercourse” with God—intimacy rooted in an awareness of divine love. Thus it is the fruit of love. The soul speaks, in listening and quietness, to the one who loves and is loved.

But Teresa says the soul that enters into mental prayer must “know” God’s love. This means mental prayer involves the intellect as well as the spirit. The intellect will seek to convince the soul that God loves him/her and wishes to be loved in return. This is the part of the mind and will responding to the divine invitation.

One of the first books on prayer that I was ever given was written by a Baptist fundamentalist who said that prayer was only two things: asking and receiving. Everything else, including all forms of contemplation, were simply not prayer. It didn’t take me long to realize how wrong, and inadequate, this answer really was. But I didn’t know what to replace this type of thinking with until later in my life. (Yes, I read many good books on prayer and continued to struggle with it and pray as best I could.) When I discovered this teaching about mental prayer I realized, over time, that there really was no clearer and more comprehensive concept of prayer. But how does this concept work in practice? I’ll say more about this tomorrow.

God’s Hands

I have heard, for as long as I can recall, the idea that God’s hands in this world are those that he has given to us. Put very simply, God has no hands but ours, no arms but ours, no legs but ours.

I once mocked this idea because I felt it directly attacked the notion of divine sovereignty. I even said that if this was true then God was a poor and broken cripple who could do nothing in this world at all but wait on us to act.

When I understood where this idea came from, and what it really meant, I changed my mind. Let me explain.

One popular story says that following Word War II some German students volunteered to help rebuild a cathedral in England damaged by Luftwaffe bombings. As the work progressed the workers were not sure how to best restore the statue of Jesus with his arms outstretched and bearing the inscription: “Come unto Me.”

The workers repaired all the damage but could not find a way to repair Christ’s hands. They decided to leave the hands off and changed the inscription to read: “Christ has no hands but ours.” (More about the credibility of this account in a moment.)

Before you assume anything please understand that however this came about, or even if this English cathedral story is apocryphal, people did not come up with this idea entirely on their own. The tradition behind it is deep and ancient. St. Theresa of Avila once prayed:

Lord Christ,

You have no body on earth but ours,

No hands but ours,

No feet but ours.

Ours are the eyes through which your compassion

Must look out on the world.

Ours are the feet by which you may still

Go about doing good.

Ours are the hands with which

You bless people now.

Bless our minds and bodies,

That we may be a blessing to others. Amen.

Multiple interpretations of this event abound (an Internet check reveals several different similar events) but one simple fact is clear – the idea behind this Christ without hands statue is sound if the thought is correctly understood and not stereotyped through misunderstanding like that which I had in the past. God is sovereign but the Sovereign God has assigned us the role of being the body of Christ in this world. Both truths are clearly taught in Holy Scripture.

Further, the idea of the body of Christ being Christ’s hands and eyes, etc. is underscored in one of the most famous prayers ever spoken and written, that of St. Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is discord, union.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

Why Should an Active Person Embrace Solitude, Silence and Contemplation?

Why would any Christian embrace a life of solitude, silence and contemplation? If you, like me, were trained to be an activist for Christ then this question is one of proportion in the end. The call to mission is a call to faithfulness to the Great Commission and this means to be actively serving the Lord. It just seems much too passive to be of any real good to Christ if you live too much of your life in solitude, silence and contemplation. At least this is how I was taught for decades.

I have shared with several of my closest friends how learning to be less active, contemplative and more intentional about times of silence have all begun to shape my own journey. This contemplative way has been taught over the course of Christian history but it has not been common among evangelicals, at least not during the last hundred years or so. If we have been anything, by training and temperament, we have been activists.

Common to monastic life are the practices of silence, work, poverty, chastity, obedience, listening to Scripture, prayer, and humility. But anyone can readily see that these practices are not designed for monks alone. In some way all of us are called to embrace these practices, even if we are actively serving Christ in business or in the life of serving the church as clergy.

Carthusian monasticism stresses that entering into silent anonymity before God can make your prayer life more fruitful for the salvation of the world. Indeed, it is believed by Carthusians that this kind of prayer life accomplishes more than anything else that we can ever do on our own. The Carthusian monk understands the primacy of contemplation in the life of the Church, a truth we neglect almost entirely. This understanding of the primacy of contemplation derives from the truth that the Christian life is all of grace -- a life freely given us by Christ.  No method or technique born of human industry compels God’s response to us. This is always true if grace is the active principle of how he deals with us. The New Testament , however, abundantly reveals that the humble petition of a repentant sinner always moves God to act. This is the foolishness of the cross, the power of God grace in the gospel.

The world says you should make a name for yourself, especially if you want to be successful. But in the mystery of God we are most faithful when we magnify him above all else. In the words of a Catholic blogger I recently discovered: “In the world, your self-reliance makes a positive impression on most people for a short time, but whatever you accomplish by your cleverness eventually will be forgotten. In God, your reliance on Him will be viewed negatively by most people for most of your life, but what God accomplishes by your trust will last forever.”

What happens when things do not go as you expected? This has been my story for several decades, especially after age 40. And then what happens when you are not understood or successful as you were taught from childhood that you should be? Christ never promised that we would be treated with regard and enjoy universal success, even serving in his kingdom and for his church. He clearly told us to take up our own cross and follow Him. Yet this is exactly where the foolishness of God comes in. A Catholic professor of spiritual theology puts it this way: “In the wisdom of the world, such humiliation is a doom worse than death -- but in the wisdom of God, this is a hidden blessing through which new life can flow into the Church by our loving obedience.”

This describes well what I am learning in my own weakness while waiting before God in solitude and quiet. An ancient anonymous writer, the author of the classic Cloud of Unknowing, said, “No matter how grievously a man has sinned, he can repent and amend his life.” Thank God this is true for all his children.

I will say more about contemplation later but suffice it to say that meditative and contemplative prayer is calm and unhurried. There is no set amount of material to be covered and no set pattern one follows. Contemplation will sometimes allow you to focus on one sentence, even one word, for hours or weeks. What is going on in this context is an inner dialog with God.

The core of such communion is love. Dialog with the indwelling Trinity includes praise, sorrow, yearning, thanking and petitioning but when quietness and simplicity rule then steps and procedures become less and less important. This has been my experience but I am but a novice. What you seek, if you seek to practice contemplation, is union with God in simple loving attentiveness. The desire is not to empty the mind, in a Buddhist fashion, but rather to allow the Lord the time and space to take over when and where he chooses. In contemplative silence you become far less aware of yourself and more aware of him. It is not done in a hurry and it cannot be learned as a method, at least as most of us know methods regarding prayer and meditation.

The Response: A Call to Prayer for a Nation in Crisis

I recently became aware of a major gathering that is taking place this Saturday in Houston, Texas. It is called The Response: A Call to Prayer for a Nation in Crisis. My initial thought was quite simple: “What could possibly be wrong with anything that calls the nation to prayer?” My second thought led me to visit the site online and ask some questions. My third thought came when I was invited to join a group of national leaders who listened to Gov. Rick Perry on a phone call set up to inform us about the event. But before I get to this conference call I must tell you that I personally called some trusted friends in Texas, friends who are not political partisans. These are wise Christian leaders with insights into the ways in which conservative political leaders have consistently linked partisan politics and candidates with calls for national prayer and renewal. The way this generally works is through large-scaled grass roots movements that get Christian leaders excited about our national crisis and then appeal to people to pray and vote.

On the website of The Response the following description is given about this one-day event:

On August 6, the nation will come together at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas for a solemn gathering of prayer and fasting for our country.

We believe that America is in a state of crisis. Not just politically, financially or morally, but because we are a nation that has not honored God in our successes or humbly called on Him in our struggles.

According to the Bible, the answer to a nation in such crisis is to gather in humility and repentance and ask God to intervene. The Response will be a historic gathering of people from across the nation to pray and fast for America.

When the day came last week for the conference call with Gov. Perry I was busy cleaning up a mess from storms that hit Carol Stream the evening before. As a result I did not get to hear about this event firsthand. Our town had been declared a disaster area in order to bring in outside help to clean up. Streets were closed, power out, etc. I suffered some broken branches and other damage, the worst being a deck table that was shattered, leaving glass everywhere. My gazebo, the lovely place where I retreat to pray, read and write had minor damage. I spent my morning cutting tree limbs and picking up glass shards from the crevices in my deck. I also pitched in to help a few neighbors as well. It was some day, reminding me that a huge tornado leaves damage that cannot be cleaned up in one or two days. All this to say that I missed the conference call. But I did get a report from a trusted and wise friend that I had asked for insight about this Saturday’s meeting. His response told me what I feared would be the case and thus made plain what I would had already felt would be the case if I had been able to join the phone call.

Today I heard the name of Jesus mentioned just once, somewhere toward the end of the reports.  Not once by the Governor.  In fact, Perry was far less "focused" and "biblically clear" than on the previous call.  "Generic God" prevailed in his language; as did "prayer as rescue.” 

My sense personally is that, once again, we are witnessing in the outworking of THE RESPONSE USA the oft-repeated ascendancy of "culture Christianity" -- or, maybe even more accurately, "civil religion" with a biblical veneer. 

I don't mean to be harsh, but I assure you that what I reported to you a couple weeks ago following my two lengthy conversations with a leader of this effort suggested an event that would be utterly dominated with Jesus Christ and New Testament paradigms.  Neither were in evidence [on the call] this morning.

Anyway, I apologize to friends I invited to call in if you felt your time was not well invested. 

My own heart is heavy.  The potential originally was great (in terms of "sparking" new steps toward a "Christ Awakening movement"), but I fear it has, once again, passed us by.  However, I will continue to pray that somehow the tide yet will turn.

My friend added this fantastic PS to his email:

The best thing I've ever read to help me understand what American culture Christianity looks like and the impact it has had on the spiritual thinking of our nation as a whole is Mark Noll's America’s God (Mark is professor of church history at Notre Dame, formerly at Wheaton College).  As Mark makes clear, what has evolved into America's God is NOT the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This just about sums up everything I feared upon visiting this website and reading about The Response. Once again a great gathering will pray and sing and call for revival. As much as I believe in real revival I honestly wonder if we can get this right when politics, and elected political leadership, are merged with spiritual concern that is plainly rooted in Jesus Christ as Lord.

A Meditation for the Last Sunday in Lent

The famous 20th century British evangelical preacher F. B. Meyer (1847-1929) left us a model prayer that I have found incredibly useful, especially during Lent.

Forgive me, most gracious Lord and Father, if this day I have done or said anything to increase the pain of this world. Pardon the unkind word, the impatient gesture, the hard and selfish deed, the failure to show sympathy and kindly help where I have had the opportunity, but missed it; and enable me so to live that I may daily do something to lessen the tide of human sorrow, and add to the sum of human happiness.

Too many of my words and gestures have been unkind. And I have too frequently failed to show sympathy, especially to those closest to me. I am very sure that I do not consider often enough how I can daily lessen the tide of human sorrow. May God help me during this season of repentance.

Faith Like Potatoes

Faith Like Potatoes is an inspirational film based upon the true story of a South African farmer named Angus Buchan. Angus, a Scotsman born in Africa, moved his family to South Africa after conditions in Zambia became dangerous and intolerable. He started from scratch and faced a series of huge losses in the process. What he never planned on was his encounter with the living Christ in a small Methodist Church. After giving his life to Christ Angus became more than a typical convert. He devoured Scripture, praying and reading the Word even in his farm fields on a daily basis. Soon he became known for his faith and stories about divine power being displayed through his life.

The title comes from a central part of Angus' story. During a drought he planted potatoes. When the harvest came, and the fields were dry and dusty, he harvested a huge potato crop of potatoes that astounded everyone around him. The film ends with Angus telling small children to touch, handle and smell these potatoes. He says, "You must have faith in God that is much like the 'faith I had for these potatoes.'"

Faith Like Potatoes has what Christianity Today calls "an intensity and immediacy that keeps it from seeming too preachy. It's a good thing that it's based on a true story (as found in the book of the same name), because Angus's experiences would be hard to swallow in a fiction film. Angus tells his wife that he's been called to be foolish for Christ, and every seemingly ridiculous choice he makes yields a miracle pointing back to the glory of God."

I personally wish the film would have revealed more of Angus' struggle with faith as well as the clear joys of victory when God answered prayer powerfully. While he is portrayed as praying over a girl struck by lightning who recovers from what appears to all to have been her death Angus' is also left in doubt and confusion when his own nephew dies in a tragic accident while Angus was driving his tractor. This is the very stuff that makes the film so truly compelling. Angus believes God but Angus struggles for faith just like you and I do.

Christianity Today gave a very excellent review of the film last year that is worth reading if the story interests you.

Many Christian films not only lack a compelling story line and too easily slip into sentimentalism. The story of Angus Buchan is told beautifully in this visual art form and the message of prayer, faith and courage is underscored again and again. A 54-minute documentary is one of several features on this DVD disc. Here you meet the real Angus and his wife and family. Here you see why this compelling story works as it does on film. More importantly you are challenged to exercise simple, real, life changing faith. Angus believes God for power to make Christ known and he believes God for miracles that come as answers to prayer and real need. He practices a "faith that works by love." This simple, faithful farmer speaks powerfully to all of us.

I rarely get excited about a Christian film like I did by seeing Faith Like Potatoes. It first appeared in 2009 and is available on DVD from Sony. You can easily find it from the usual rental sources as well as available for purchase on the Internet at a very good price. I intend to buy a copy in order to share it with friends.

Forms of Prayer

I have been reading an old book that bears the title The Prayers of the Early Church (1930), written by Dom Fernand Cabrol, a Benedictine. It is a study of how the early church developed prayer within the context of liturgy. There is much to like in this treatment but some things to pursue that will not gain universal acclaim for sure. The flavor is quite Roman Catholic.

In a chapter titled “Forms of Prayer” the author writes: “From the very outset one of the distinguishing features of liturgical prayer is the element of spontaneity or improvisation in its utterance.” He adds, “Thus we learn from Justin, Tertullian, and most of the writers of this period . . . even the most solemn formulas were extemporized.” Variety and free-form were normative but in time more was written down. He rightly concludes: “However, this freedom of improvisation was not anarchy. Prayer was subject to certain rules; in some instances the theme was necessarily used, for instance in the name of the three divine persons in the administration of Baptism and the words of institution in the celebration of the Eucharist. All liturgies bear out this fact, for notwithstanding their variety all have preserved these traditional formulas.”

The distinguishing feature of these early gathered prayers was spontaneity. There are forms we can discover, for sure, but people were allowed to speak and pray in public. This does not argue against read (liturgical) prayers at all. After all, the New Testament provides such prayers. But it does argue against limiting all prayer in worship to one or two leaders. The church must pray when it gathers, all of it. Some will speak. Some will not. But the Spirit must not be limited to forms. Forms have their place but freedom is a mark of congregational life in worship.