Seasonal re-pete ;^)
dr...@ecity.net
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
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 in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying [to self] that we are born to eternal life.
(this version is taken from Eknath Easwaran's 'Words to Live By')
Pete Watters
Thanks, Diane. This is my favorite.
Pete
Karen Bowe
Thank you! We sang that when I was a wee Catholic schoolgirl. It was
my first mantra.
dr...@ecity.net
8-)
(and to Pete, too... 8-)
Kwanseum
>
>St. Francis Prayer for Peace
>
>Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
>Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
>Where there is injury, pardon;
>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 in pardoning that we are pardoned;
>It is in dying [to self] that we are born to eternal life.
>
>(this version is taken from Eknath Easwaran's 'Words to Live By')
Nice. Thanks. Now who put that [to self] in there? Is
this a "no sleeping only dying!" type of thing? Is there
any evidence that St. Francis meant dying in that sense?
--
Kwanseum - to email me remove all the 2's
dr...@ecity.net
Eknath Easwaran. It is the version I prefer as Buddhist. It is in
parentheses so you can take it out and to signify that it is not original.
No there is no evidence that St. Francis meant this, but it means
something to me about removing obsurations.
droll
PKHarvey
writes:
Well, actually there's lots of evidence that St. Francis meant this. Death as
"death to self" saturates the christian scripture from which Francis drew the
phrase. (It's important to know that lots of his poetry, prose, written work
in general, is lifted either verbatim or as paraphrase directly from scripture.
The original, primitive rule of the Franciscans was actually nothing but
phrases from scripture strung together.) Although the "to self" doesn't appear
(in its Italian equivalent) in the original, it's right down the middle of
christian orthodoxy both now and at the time, and it's very safe to assume that
it's exactly what Francis meant. Poverty (relinquishment of all ownership of
anything) is at the core of his teaching, and he was very, very explicit that
the highest expression of poverty was relinquishment of even the self. It's
also interesting to note that when Francis meant "bodily death" he usually said
so. For instance in the Canticle, "All praise be yours, my Lord, through our
sister, Bodily Death..." Later in the same he refers to the "second death,"
also another way of referring to, specifically, bodily death.
P.K.
dr...@ecity.net
Oh, thanks P.K! 8-)
I'm really glad to know this.
droll (say, where do I pay....I know I haven't paid... ;^)