Clergy Notes — 18th Sunday after Pentecost, September 22, 2024

Today’s Reflection is “The Prayer of a Seventeenth Century Nun”.

I have tried to discover more about it – maybe the author, the details of her religious order or her location. But I have not been able to. And perhaps that is appropriate. She wants to remain anonymous!

When my attention was drawn to this by a friend a few years ago, it gave me a quiet chuckle. I love how real and practical it is. And it also makes me realize how little human nature changes over the ages.

It is, at its heart, a gentle warning about some of the things to be aware of as we age. Three of them really resonate with me.

First, I know that I often speak too much. My nickname as a child was “radio” – with my mother and grandmother telling me that they were always trying to find my “off switch”. Now I feel that I have a great deal to share with others from my seventy one years’ experience of life on earth, forty two of them in Holy Orders. Like this nun, I am always tempted to help people with their problems, conflicts and challenges. I remind myself that no-one appreciates constructive criticism as much as the one who is giving it!! My former spiritual director said that he never gives advice – because the wise person does not need it and the fool will never take it.

Secondly, I have come to realize that the question, “How are you?” is merely a conversation opener. It is not a request for an immediate, detailed account of my aches and pains, doctor’s appointments and sleep problems.

Finally, after reading this prayer, I now make an effort to tell people when they have said or done something that is kind or helpful. “You really have a gift for putting people at their ease”, “I admire your capacity to keep calm even under pressure”, or “The success of this project is due, in no small part, to your leadership”. And to add a heart-felt and not perfunctory Thank You.

So there you have it – the meditation of a twenty-first century priest on the prayer of a seventeenth century nun!

Father Neil Gray

Download the Liturgy at Home booklet for Sunday, September 22, 2024.

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A Reflection: The Prayer of a Seventeenth Century Nun

The Prayer of a Seventeenth Century Nun

Lord, thou knowest better than I know myself that I am growing older and will some day be old. Keep me from the fatal habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every occasion. Release me from craving to straighten out everybody’s affairs. Make me thoughtful but not moody; helpful but not bossy. With my vast store of wisdom it seems a pity not to use it all, but Thou knowest Lord, that I want a few friends at the end.

Keep my mind free from the recital of endless details; give me wings to get to the point. Seal my lips on my aches and pains. They are increasing and love of rehearsing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by. I dare not ask for grace enough to enjoy the tales of other’s pains, but help me to endure them with patience. I dare not ask for improved memory, but for a growing humility and a lessening cocksureness when my memory seems to clash with the memories of others. Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally I may be mistaken.

Keep me reasonably sweet; I do not want to be a saint-some of them are so hard to live with-but a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the Devil. Give me the ability to see good things in unexpected places and talents in unexpected people. And, give me, O Lord, the grace to tell them so.

Amen.

Anonymous

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