{"id":9342,"date":"2020-03-28T09:37:04","date_gmt":"2020-03-28T08:37:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/?p=9342"},"modified":"2020-03-30T11:41:40","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T09:41:40","slug":"turn-to-the-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.irenebom.com\/prayer_matters\/2020\/03\/28\/turn-to-the-light\/","title":{"rendered":"Turn to the light"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nRotterdam at twilight  (Photo: Irene Bom)<\/span><\/p>\n

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Here is a prayer inspired by Phos Hilaron<\/em> \u2014 the earliest Christian hymn (outside of the Bible), dating from the 3rd or 4th century. Known as the \u201cLamp-lighting hymn,\u201d it was traditionally sung as the evening lamps were lit.
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\nMay this prayer, inspired by those ancient words, give us words and inspiration as we to turn to God, our Gladsome Light, especially “in times of stress, fear, and grief, in times of blindness, temptation, danger, and perdition”.<\/div>\n

 
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Twenty-first Century Phos Hilaron<\/em><\/h3>\n

O God, who is light in the darkness,
\n      we pray for those among us who in the night hours work their shifts,
\n            or those who labor in places where light is dim.
\nBe for them and for us protection in the dark.<\/strong><\/p>\n

O God, who is the bright morning star,
\n      we pray for those among us who grieve the loss of loved ones,
\n            the tarnishing of innocence,
\n            the failing of health,
\n            the flight of security.
\nBe for them and for us a sure defense and the promise of a new day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

O God, who is sight to the blind,
\n      we pray for those among us whose eyes are clouded,
\n      who are blind in soul, mind, or body.
\nBe for them and for us both courage and sight.<\/strong><\/p>\n

O God, who is strength to the besieged,
\n      we pray for those among us who are beset by temptation,
\n            those who are in danger,
\n            those whose enemies are close and whose help seems far away.
\nBe for them and for us a present fortress against our foes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

O God, who is salvation to the lost,
\n      we pray for those among us who have never found your way,
\n            or who, having found it, have strayed from your path.
\nBe for them and for us the beacon that guides safely home.<\/strong><\/p>\n

O God who is comfort to the fearful,
\n      we pray for those among us who live in fear of threats real or imagined,
\n            whose lives are torn by war,
\n            whose thoughts are confused by mental illness,
\n            whose souls and bodies are ravaged by abuse.
\nBe for them and for us consolation and surety against anxiety.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Give us wisdom, O God, to turn to you in times of stress, fear, and grief,
\n      in times of blindness, temptation, danger, and perdition.
\nGrant us patience to wait for you,
\n      and courage to be strong in your might,
\n            through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.<\/strong><\/p>\n

 
\n~ posted on the Brummhart Publishing<\/a> website
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Phos Hilaron<\/em> in word and song<\/h3>\n