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Let my prayer be set before you as incense,
The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
(Psalm 141)
Jesus invited his disciples
to “pray always and not lose heart,” and throughout the
centuries faithful women and men have responded to this call.
Indeed we can imagine that great cloud of witnesses, the Communion
of Saints — those living and those who have passed over to the
further shore — raising hearts and hands and voices in prayer,
echoing the words of the Psalmist above.
Prayer is
putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition,
and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts.
(Mother Teresa
in "Mother Teresa: In My Own Words.")
In the written
record left from those centuries, as in scripture itself, women’s
voices — their experiences and their prayers — have been given
little space. Yet how vital and stirring are those prayers,
speaking to us with power across the barriers of time and space.
O great Chief,
light a candle within my heart
that I may see what is therein
and sweep the rubbish from your dwelling place.
("An African girl" in
"Women of Prayer: An anthology of
everyday prayers from women around the world." Compiled
by Dorothy Stewart.)
Consider the widow of
Zaraphath, whom God charges to feed Elijah; or the Canaanite woman
who intercedes with Jesus for the healing of her daughter; or Mary
and Elizabeth, whose prayers stir us to listen for God’s call to us.
... prayer is not asking for what you think you want,
but asking to be changed in ways you can’t imagine.
(Kathleen Norris in "Amazing Grace: a Vocabulary of Faith.")
Consider the countless women
— from Julian of Norwich to Mother Teresa, from Sojourner Truth to
Dorothy Day — who touch us with words of passionate devotion and
deep truth. And consider the nature of their prayers, which move us
to experience their adoration, lament, protest, contrition,
intercession...
Dead-tired Jesus,
help
me
and my dear ones to endure patiently
the helpless weakness of our souls and bodies.
("Four Lithuanian women imprisoned in northern Siberia for their
faith" in
"Women of Prayer: An anthology of everyday prayers
from women around the world." Compiled by Dorothy Stewart.)
What would it be like to lift up the voices of women
praying in our own day?
What if we brought
together women from across the world, women bound by an abiding love
for Jesus, to share their personal stories, deepest hopes, dreams,
and personal prayers — as we listen to God
and to one another?
A woman like me needs a
sewing machine today.
To build her business.
Sustain her spirit of enterprise.
Her dream of providing for her family.
Help us offer partnership to women.
As they work toward economic independence.
(Jenifer Gamber
in
“Lifting Women’s Voices to Change the World.")
What would the prayers of
women tell us today about our differences: about their lives, about
their understanding of God; about our own lives, and our own
understanding of God. How
would a deeper understanding of these
differences build bridges
of spirit? What ways of listening would be
born? How would we support each other?
Be merciful to me Lord, for
I am lonely and weak.
Do not let anybody who is willing to help me and my friends be weak.
Give them strength.
Give me strength.
(Mirabelle
of Abangoh, Cameroon from "An Orphan's Prayer" in
“Lifting Women’s Voices to Change the World.")
The Center for Anglican
Communion Studies at Virginia Theological Seminary and
The Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross will convene just such a
gathering in March, 2014, called
Anglican Women at Prayer: Weaving our
Bonds of Affection.
Prayer
connects us to God and God’s power. Changes take place when we pray.
Sometimes the issue is transformed, at other times we are the ones
changed. Either way, God’s power is at work.
(From "Faithful
in Prayer" on Mothers' Union web site.)
As our contribution to this
work, Episcopal Church & Visual Arts (ECVA) invites visual artists —
men as well as women — from around the world to submit images which
visualize women’s experience of prayer, their work of prayer,
their prayers. These images will be curated in an online exhibition
and projected during the conference. In addition, some images may be
reproduced in print for the conference.
God Almighty,
You have created us for a purpose.
Help us to fulfill it by your Holy Spirit.
(Pritty Sangma of Guwahati, India in “Have Mercy, Oh Lord”
in “Lifting Women’s Voices to Change the World.”)
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Curators: |
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Phoebe Griswold
Chair, Anglican Women at Prayer: Weaving our Bonds of
affection
Member, The Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross |
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Margaret Adams Parker
Artist; Adjunct Instructor, Religion and Culture, Virginia
Theological Seminary |
C. Robin
Janning
Artist; Executive Director, ECVA |
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