Clergy Notes — Easter 5, May 7, 2023

During Tuesday morning Mass this past week, I was unexpectedly moved by the psalm and the repetition of its antiphon:

“You have been my confidence since I was young. Alleluia!”

The psalms have often been for me a place where my mind quiets down (or wanders off!), and in the absence of obsessive over-thinking, my soul is free to respond in ways I haven’t even been aware it needs to.  I do not know why this particular line moved me so deeply but, in the moment, I was content to simply sit with the mystery and be thankful that we have the gift of the psalms as part of our spiritual treasury.

However, my inquisitive brain cannot be silenced for long, and I later realized that part of what moved me was the phrase ‘since I was young’ – and that in repeating it, I felt some compassion for the younger version of myself who wasn’t always very self-confident. Although I did not realize it back then, God my confidence was praying through me, perhaps changing the fabric of the world in ways I could never imagine.

I thought too about the long history of the world and how often God has prayed through faithful yet uncertain people, healing the world both through their prayers and their actions, though they probably felt like nothing they did made any difference.

What is your confidence in the face of life’s uncertainties? I commend Psalm 71 to you, especially this week, as you hold the upcoming Diocesan Synod and its members in your prayers. May it refresh your awareness of God’s unfailing presence in your life, and in the life of the church and the world – now and always.

Mother Amanda

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