Prayers – Page 6 – The Green Tau

Wassail – Prayers for trees and fruitfulness

4th January 2025

Wassailing and the blessing of fruit trees traditionally takes place at some point during January – after the solstice when the days are growing longer and before the trees fully form their buds. Wassail means good health!

For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Isaiah 55:12

A reading Genesis 2: 4b, 8-9, 15-17

In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there planted the human whom he had formed. Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The Lord God took and placed the human in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’

Lord God who first planted the garden of Eden,

bless the gardens we too tend.

Wassail!

Lord God who made every tree to grow,

bless the trees we have planted.

Wassail!

Lord God who gave us trees with fruits pleasing to the eye and good to eat,

bless these trees with such fruits.

Wassail!

Lord God who made us to be your gardeners,

bless the work of our hands.

Wassail!

Lord God who created birds and insects, bugs and all manner of creatures

to be our companions and helpers in the garden,

bless them one and all.

Wassail!

Lord God whose earth produces food in due season,

may we share that equally and generously with all our kith and kin.

Wassail!

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” Revelation 22:1-2

Prayers for the feast of the Holy Innocents

28th December 2024

Thus says the Lord, “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” Jeremiah 31: 15

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

Yet we fail you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

Yet we fail you.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

Yet we fail you.

A reading from Matthew 2: 16-18

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the magi. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

‘A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.’

Response

Thus says the Lord, ‘Not only in Ramah but in Ramallah too

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!’

In Rafah, Jabalia and Khan Yunis too

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In Zamzam, Abu Shouk and Al Salam of North Darfur

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In the refugee camps of Arkoum, Adré and Farchana, Chad

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In Goma, north east in the Democratic Republic of Congo

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In the gang warfare in Haiti

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In the aftermath of earth quakes in Vanuatu

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

In the small boats crossing the Mediterranean and the Channel

is the sound of wailing of wailing and lamentation heard.

In the underground shelters and the streets of Kharkiv, Lviv, and Odesa

is the sound of wailing and lamentation heard!

Lord, how is it we do not hear and do not respond?

Lord, how is it that our governments ignore the cries

and yet continue to send arms?

Lord, how is it that politicians say they understand people’s concern

and yet just sit on their hands?

Lord, how is it that financial institutions perceive the risks

and yet continue to provide the funds?

“Can a woman forget her nursing child, or lack compassion for the son of her womb? Even if she could forget, I will not forget you!” Isaiah 49:15

Prayer

Merciful God, Mother and Father of all,

remake in us new hearts for love,

new minds for wisdom,

and new resolve for action.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the wolf shall live with the lamb,

where refugees will not have to fear a tyrants rage.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the leopard will lie down with the kid,

where those of minority faiths will not fear oppression.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the calf, the lion and the fatling will be led by a child,

and where no child will be sidelined by those in power.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the cow and bear, the calf and cub, will eat together,

where no one will go hungry because someone has hoarded the surplus.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the lion eats like an ox,

where the CEO will dine like a delivery driver – and vice versa.

Help us to reshape our world as a place where the

where the baby shall play over the hole of the asp,

where babies will sleep to the lullabies of the wind turbine.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where the toddler will put its hand on the adder’s den,

where all will be inoculated against childhood diseases.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

where no one will cause injury or destruction,

where all will be treated as holy.

Help us to reshape our world as a place

that is as full of the knowledge of the Lord

as the waters that cover the sea.

Amen. (With material from Isaiah 11 6-9)

At the Solstice

21st December 2024

And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. Genesis 1:14-15

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Isaiah 45: 7-8

I form light and create darkness,
I make weal and create woe;
I the Lord do all these things.

Shower, O heavens, from above,
    and let the skies rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation may spring up,
    and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also;
    I the Lord have created it.

A response:

A turning point in the year is reached,

and as the longest night reaches its peak

and the shortest day

recedes to its briefest span –

so the sun’s year turns again.

The dark draws back

its day time occupation,

and gradually reframes itself once more

as night.

But before we rush on,

let’s take time to embrace the dark

that gives us rest – and time to pause –

with long evenings when books and loved ones

can calm our souls.

And before we rush on,

let’s take time to ponder how

the Advent days of expectant waiting

have kept pace with the darker nights –

and how even now

the mornings’s dawn still holds off

as if waiting for that greater light.

And those of us who have walked in darkness

will see that light, the dawning

of the day that ushers in new beginnings,

new life, the sun reborn,

the birth of the Christ child.

As the sun-shaped days take hold,

it is the evenings that first draw back

releasing the season’s extra light,

the assurance of the Son’s salvation.

From now on the days will lengthen,

extending once more the working day.

As we look up to the skies and down to the earth,

let righteousness sprout forth.

As seasons turn and new years begin,

together we shall journey on into God’s kingdom.

May God bless us in the darkness.

May God bless us in the light.

May God bless us in each season.

May God bless us with salvation in the birth of the Son.

Amen.

A voice cries out

30th November 2024

Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. Isaiah 45:22

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Jeremiah 23: 5-6

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

A reflection on Isaiah 40:3-5

A voice cries out: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord –

Let us open our hearts and minds to receive the wisdom of God,

to attune our ears to the word of God,

and focus our eyes to see the wonder of God’s creation.

A voice cries out: Make straight in the desert a highway for our God –

Let us set straight the trajectory of decisions

that will cut carbon emissions,

that will cut the use and abuse of plastics

and that will target a sustainable future.

A voice cries out: Let every valley be lifted up –

Let us share our national wealth

to cancel the impossible debts of the majority south,

to give them the financial power to adapt to climate change

and to lift their people out of poverty.

A voice cries out: Let every mountain and hill be made low –

Let us remove all that impedes the development of other economies,

let us share our technology and resources,

let us remove unequal trade restrictions

and let us be ready to learn from others in return.

A voice cries out: Let the uneven ground become level,
and the rough places a plain –

Let us make level the global playing field,

treat everyone as equals, removing all prejudice and bias,

welcoming the stranger and the migrant,

and embracing everyone as brother and sister.

A voice cries out: Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed –

Let us recognise that we are all one creation,

that together we reveal the glory of God’s gift to us,

and all of us our able to reflect that glory throughout our lives.

A voice cries out: Let all people shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’

Amen. Amen. Amen.

We do not presume to walk on this earth

17th November 2024

Know that the Lord is God. It is he that made us, and not we are ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Psalm 100:3

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading: Deuteronomy 11: 11-17

But the land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven. It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end. So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you.

Response:
We do not presume to walk on this earth,

O merciful Lord,
trusting in our own righteousness,
but in your manifold and great mercies
We are not worthy so much
as to gather up the leftover grains

nor glean the fruits fallen from your trees –
But you are the same Lord,
whose property is always to have mercy:
Grant us therefore, gracious Lord,
so to live where you plant us,

that we may work in harmony with nature

and share your rich harvest with all.

Amen

Thank you God for trees and fruit, herbs and grasses

Forgive us when through greed and thoughtlessness,

we have cut down forests and burnt the scrub,

when we have prioritised monoculture and marginalised diversity,

when we have drained rivers and aquifers

favouring cash crops over native plants.

Remake our hearts and minds

and so restore our way of living.

Thank you God for birds of the air,

the creatures of the land and the fish of the sea.

Forgive us when through greed and thoughtlessness,

we have promoted our own livestock and made refugees of the native wildlife,

when we enlarged our own living space and made other creatures homeless.

Remake our hearts and minds

and so restore our way of living.

Thank you God for soil and water and the fresh air we breathe.

Forgive us when through greed and thoughtlessness

we take from the soil but do not give back,

when we pollute the waters with waste we do not want,

when we fill the air with an excess of greenhouse gases.

Remake our hearts and minds

and so restore our way of living.

Thank you God for our brothers and sisters, our kith and kin

Forgive us when through greed and thoughtlessness

we rob them of their livelihoods,

when we divert their wealth into our pockets,

when we ignore their pleas for help.

Remake our hearts and minds

and so restore our way of living.

Lord God, as you made us in your image, that we might live with you

and, as your Son took on our form that he might live among us,

you have shown us how to live.

Remake our hearts and minds

and so restore our way of living.

Amen.

Prayers at Armistide

9th November 2024

In the UK today is know as Armistice Day, recalling the armistice signed in 1918 bringing an end to the fighting in the First World War.
The end of that war and the threat of future war, did not and has not avoided further armed conflicts not the death and destruction that warfare creates.

Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my might; Isaiah 12:2

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

A reading from Psalm verses 1 and 2, from The Message and from the RRSVA

If God doesn’t build the house,
    the builders only build shacks.
If God doesn’t guard the city,
    the night watchman might as well nap.
It’s useless to rise early and go to bed late,
    and work your worried fingers to the bone.

Don’t you know he enjoys
giving rest to those he loves?

Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labour in vain.
Unless the Lord guards the city,
the guard keeps watch in vain.

It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives sleep to his beloved.

Response

Forgive us when we trust in our strength,

and not yours.

Forgive us when we trust in our own wisdom,

and do not seek yours.

Forgive us when we turn to threats and ultimatums,

and do not seek dialogue.

Forgive us when we make up our own minds,

and do not spend time listening to the other.

Forgive us when ignore the past,

and focus only on our own suffering.

Forgive us when fail to seek justice,

but rather seek to oppress.

Forgive us when we fail to understand,

but rather shout out our views all the more loudly.

Forgive us when we steam roller the opposition,

and do not seek a compromise.

Forgive us when we fire weapons,

and do not seek peace.

Loving God,

have mercy on us.

Have mercy

on all those we have injured through war.

Teach us to heal.

Have mercy

on all those we have trapped in a spiral of revenge.

Teach us to to forgive.

Have mercy

on all those we have trained in war fare.

Teach us to be peace makers.

Have mercy

on all those who have been sucked into the tradition of war.

Teach us the story of reconciliation.

Have mercy

on all those who work in the arms trade.

Teach us to make plough shares.

Have mercy

on all those whose homes and livelihoods have been destroyed.

Teach us to build communities of love.

Have mercy

on all those habitats and ecosystems we have uprooted.

Teach us to plant trees.

Have mercy

on the soils and bodies of water that we have polluted.

Teach us to till and restore the land.

Have mercy

on all those whose faith we have undermined.

Teach us to love one another with humility.

Amen

Wisdom learned from creation

2nd November 2024

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of her hands. Psalm 19:1

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading – Psalm 119: 4-6, 18-19,27- How to live:

You, O Lord, have charged that we should diligently keep your commandments.

O that my ways were made so direct that I might keep your statutes.

Then should I not be put to shame, because I have regard for all your commandments.

Open my eyes, that I may see the wonders of your law.

I am a stranger upon earth; hide not your commandments from me.

Make me understand the way of your commandments, and so shall I meditate on your wondrous works.

If the idea of obeying commandments sounds too authoritarian, too black and white, think of God’s commandments as the instruction manual for the world, the user’s guide, best practices for living – or even as an expanded set of the rules of nature.

A further reading, Isaiah 55: 6-9:

As the rain and the snow come down from above, and return not again but water the earth,

‘Bringing forth life and giving growth, seed for sowing and bread to eat,

‘So is my word that goes forth from my mouth; it will not return to me fruitless,

‘But it will accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the task I gave it.’

For the sun and moon

that mete out the seasons,

and measure out the days and weeks:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For chlorophyll and photosynthesis,

for leaves and phytoplankton,

that turn sunlight into energy:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For H2O in all its forms,

for evaporation and precipitation that waters the earth

and quickens life.

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For the air we breathe,

a fluctuating mix of gases

whose balance must be conserved for life to bloom:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For rocks and mountains,

erosion and sedimentation,

that lays out a rich blanket of soil:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For DNA building blocks

that see life adapt and evolve,

reminders of our network of kinship:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

For flora and fauna that twist and twine,

building habitats and

grounding ecosystems:

We thank you, Lord our creator.

As ‘Johnny-come-lately’ to this world,

Lord grant us the humility to learn from what is already here,

to look with awe and wonder at what is happily established,

to treat with respect ecosystems built up over millennia,

to study and understand the laws of nature,

to observe and respond to the natural cycles that maintain life,

to cooperate with others

and with sensitivity to share this space where all can be at home.

Amen.

The Grace

Lamenting our shortcomings

26th October 2024

The LORD is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. Psalm 9:9

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading: Psalm 10:1-6, 12

Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.

For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,
those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord.
In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, ‘God will not seek it out’;
all their thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’

Their ways prosper at all times;
   your judgements are on high, out of their sight;
   as for their foes, they scoff at them.
They think in their heart, ‘We shall not be moved;
   throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.’

Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
do not forget the oppressed.

Response based on Daniel 9:4-10

Great and awesome God,

keeper of promises

and steadfast in love,

we have sinned and done wrong:

our greed has made paupers of those we should love,

our desire for more has taken away even the little they had,

we have despised and oppressed our brothers and sisters.

Great and awesome God,

keeper of promises

and steadfast in love,

we have acted wickedly and rebelled:

we have carved out our paths

and ignore the ways of your creation

leaving behind us a trail of devastation.

Great and awesome God,

keeper of promises

and steadfast in love,

we have turned aside from your commandments:

we over-grazed the land, over fished the seas,

we have decimated the forests and polluted the waterways,

we have taken more than we can restore.

Great and awesome God,

keeper of promises

and steadfast in love,

we have not listened to your prophets, who speak in your name:

we have ignored the wail of the sea birds,

the gasps of the rhino

and the disappearing drone of the insects.

Great and awesome God,

keeper of promises

and steadfast in love,

shame falls on us:

we let islands drown and ice sheets melt,

we let the tundra burn and rivers dry up,

we let cities flood and fields whither.

Lord our God,

to you belong mercy and forgiveness,

reform and redeem us,

renew a right spirit within us,

that all your creation may be treated

with love and care.

Amen.

The Grace.

Lament for the loss of biodiversity

19th October 2024

My eyes grow dim with weeping. Each day I beg your help; O Lord, I reach my pleading hands to you for mercy. Soon it will be too late! Psalm 89:9, 10a

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Luke 18: 9-14 (The Message) He told his next story to some who were complacently pleased with themselves over their moral performance and looked down their noses at the common people: “Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax man. The Pharisee posed and prayed like this: ‘Oh, God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, crooks, adulterers, or, heaven forbid, like this tax man. I fast twice a week and tithe on all my income.’ “Meanwhile the tax man, slumped in the shadows, his face in his hands, not daring to look up, said, ‘God, give mercy. Forgive me, a sinner.’” Jesus commented, “This tax man, not the other, went home made right with God. If you walk around with your nose in the air, you’re going to end up flat on your face, but if you’re content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself.”

Response:-

Suffering God,

Full of grief, I pour out my sorrows;

Full of mourning, I bewail my loss:

Bluebells that cannot keep pace with climate change,

Ash, elm and chestnut trees felled by disease,

Frogspawn that succumbs to unseasonal cold,

Butterflies deceived by unseasonal warmth/ rain*

Suffering God,

Full of grief, I pour out my sorrows;

Full of mourning, I bewail my loss:

Wetlands that are no longer wet,

Curlews that have nowhere to feed,

Streams overwhelmed by fertilisers,

Rivers polluted by sewage.

Suffering God,

Full of grief, I pour out my sorrows;

Full of mourning, I bewail my loss:

Glaciers receding up mountains,

Alpine plants pushed over the edge,

Mountain hares with nowhere to go,

Moorlands and tundra burnt to a cinder.

Suffering God,

Full of grief, I pour out my sorrows;

Full of mourning, I bewail my loss:

Oceans with no whales,

Savannahs with no elephants

Coral reefs with no coral,

Icecaps with no ice.

Merciful God,

Forgive us our greed and our complacency,

Our folly and selfishness.

Forgive us when we have failed to see our errors,

have chosen to overlook our faults.

Forgive us when we have not listened to the facts,

preferring to believe our own stories.

Forgive us when we have ignored the plight of others,

caring only for number one.

Restore in us a right mind and a right spirit.

Strengthen our hands and our hearts to care for your world.

Embolden our will to love our neighbours as ourselves.

Free up our grasp on wealth and resources

that all may benefit from your bounty.

Release us from our pride and self assurance

that we can truly worship you,

our creator, redeemer and sustainer.

Amen.

The grace

Each year has different extremes of weather

The Joys and Sorrows of Civilisation

12th October 2024

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. Isaiah 11:1

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading: So Paul stood up and with a gesture began to speak: ‘You Israelites, and others who fear God, listen. The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors ….. he made David their king. In his testimony about him he said, “I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after my heart, who will carry out all my wishes.” Of this man’s posterity God has brought to Israel a Saviour, Jesus, as he promised. Acts 13: 16, 17a, 22b,23

Reflection

Roots secure us to the past, ensure that we are part of the continuity of creation; shoots and branches take our lives forward into the as yet unformed future. Without the next generation there will be no ongoing continuity. The gospels of Luke and Matthew both locate Jesus within a human family tree; the prologue of John’s gospel locates him as co existent with the beginning of all creation. Later in John’s gospel, Jesus affirms his coexistence with the Father and the ongoing coexistence, through him, of all believers, all God’s children.

For gifts of past generations

We thank you God:

For the gift of fire for cooking and heating

For the gift of clean water and sewers

We thank you God:

For the domestication of cattle and horses,

Cats and dogs, sheep and pigs,

Hens and geese

We thank you God:

For the gift of gardening and arable cultivation,

sowing and reaping,

growing and harvesting

We thank you God:

For the gift of healing and caring,

of medicine and surgery

For the understanding of the intricacies of mind and body

We thank you God:

For the gift of story telling and drama,

of art and observation

means of sharing grief and joy.

We thank you God:

For the gift of learning and research,

of teaching and sharing

We thank you God:

For the gift of exploration and endeavour, of travel and communication

We thank you God:

For the gift of worship, of self realisation and of the knowledge of God.

We thank you God:

But what shall we pass on to generations to come?

Do we offer gifts or burdens?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Clean air or choking smog?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Living water or dying oceans?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Renewables or fossil fuels?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Biodiversity or widespread extinction?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Fertile soils or inhospitable dust?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Balmy summers or wild fires?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Snow capped mountains or drowned coastlines?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

Homes for all or camps for migrants?

Merciful God forgive and inspire us.

May we be wise guardians of what we have received

Skilful custodians of what we consume

Generous donors of what we hand on

That the future of creation will be bright and beautiful,

fair and just.

Amen