A Prayer for Our Church

Rev. Jeffrey Symynkywicz, February 23, 2003

Come, Spirit of Wholeness and Peace, and abide with us at this time and in this place.

A long road—more than two-and-one-half-centuries long—has brought us to this place. Two-hundred-and-fifty-nine years of the full flow of human emotions—two-hundred and fifty-nine years of good times and bad; years of abundance and scarcity; times of joy and of sadness; times of peace and of war.

May the souls of those departed, and those who will come after us, crowd with us into this meetinghouse on this day, warming our gathering with the presence of their memory; inspiring our gathering with the radiance of their hope.

The past offers its gifts to us graciously
with strong hands of bold and free-spirited souls
who dared to offer their world (and ours)
a liberating vision of hope and courage.
May we remember gratefully this day
those gifts of the Universalist spirit,
ours for borrowing in our time:
gifts of art and song and forms of worship (perhaps)
but even more—
gifts of spirit—zest—energy—and generosity--
a gift of a faith that will not rest
until the circle of community is as large as the universe itself
and human loves grows large as the very heart of God.

May this church always, ever be:
a home for our spirits,
a precious incubator of our souls,
a cherished communion of dear friends,
free, united, and whole.

May we remember how hallowed it is to share this blessed community—this dear church—with one another.
May we celebrate its awesome powers, and feel its great love, and support it in a spirit of generosity and abundance, that it might continue to do well its work in this world.

Amen.

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