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| Breastplate of Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor ~ 1549 |
A New Breastplate Prayer For A New Day
I awaken and arise this new day,
calling upon the oneness of God,
who in inner relatedness
is family of three -
creating, reclaiming, loving, restoring.
I awaken and arise this new day
through Gabriel's winged, good news;
young Mary's acceptance,
through the shining of Bethlehem star,
through the meandering waters of Jordan,
through the desert combat of forty days,
through the giving of sight to blind Bartimaeus,
through the friendship of women at Calvary's cross,
through the three-Mary's witness of Easter morning,
through angels' attesting on Ascension day.
I take to myself this new day
the whirling light of bright seraphim,
the song-worship of angels,
the Alleluia of Christ's bright rising,
the charge of prophets,
the pondering of apostles,
the clarity of martyrs,
the fresh energy of confessors,
the creativity of saints.
I take to myself this new day
the depth-enormity of universe,
the flaring of sun,
the flabbergast of galaxies,
the softness of moon phase,
the spark and blaze of fire,
the electric flash of lightning,
the mystery of atoms,
the skin-touch of breezes,
the freshness of winds,
the crash of waves,
the blue-green of ocean,
the strength of rocks,
the fertility of soil,
the hatching of eggs,
the breeching of whales,
the patterning of flowers,
the leafing-out of trees.
I call upon
God's power to evolve me,
God's wisdom to inform me,
God's eye to care for me maternally,
God's ear to hear me in my pleading,
God's word to awaken me,
God's hand to squeeze my own,
God's way to open before me,
God's shield to hover over and before me,
God's cherubim to join me.
I call upon all that is good
to stand by my body,
to stand by my soul
against addictions,
curses and any who would wish me harm or ill,
against politicians who serve themselves,
against clerics who've forsaken soul,
against panderers, hustlers,
the shady deal,
the dirty deal,
the secret deal,
the deadly deal,
against false advertisers and
tricksters,
against betrayers,
thieves and cheats,
against willful ignorance and
complicity in bad deeds,
through lazy indifference,
against war profiteers,
shows of force,
degraders and dividers,
brutes and bullies,
against the soul-destroying messages of
racists,
anti-semites,
white supremacists,
women haters,
home-invaders,
sex abusers and traffickers,
against gun idolaters,
terrorists - home grown and of the faraway kind.
Christ, protect me from
money-worship,
self pity,
resentment,
vanity and too much talking,
smugness,
showing off,
self-preoccupation and
contentment with being so desperately earthbound.
Put a hedge around my heart,
safeguarding it from my own worst possibilities,
from the temptation not to grow,
against stumbling and faltering and
withering anxieties.
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ to my right,
Christ to my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when when I sit down,
Christ when I stand,
Christ in the heart of those who remember me,
Christ in the mouth of those who speak of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
I awaken and rise up this new day,
calling upon the oneness of God,
whose inner community of three,
imagines, enlivens, salvages, protects.
