SUGGESTIONS TO HELP OUR VISITORS WITH PRAYER
Most importantly, and fundamentally, we have to allow the stones themselves to speak...
- Churches are often called houses of prayer and their very architecture and atmosphere help visitors remember the invitation to prayer.
- Many visitors are on holiday and may be open to giving time to reflecting on the meaning and purpose of their lives.
- Beware of cluttering up the space of a holy place with fussy notices and tatty cards/sheets…even introducing meditative music may destroy the oasis of quiet which is valued by many visitors.
Talk in the PCC or in other groups about the six key suggestions below. Choose realistically how much can be introduced or up-graded – one or two things done well is better than taking on too much and doing it badly. For those churches where these areas are already well-developed, there are additional suggestions towards the end of this resourcing paper.
- Having a visitors book with a section to encourage visitors to write what the experience of being in the building has been like for them
- Producing a simple prayer on a card or bookmark to take away and making it free
- Some suggestions of what might be written on it are asterisked below – you may wish to include the church’s dedication, its place-name and the year, as the card may well be kept as a memento of the visit.
- Having a short leaflet available to help visitors to pray which may be taken away to maybe provide a spur for the on-going spiritual journey. [See below for some suggestions of material which you might use].
- Opportunity to write prayers, to place them in a sacred location in the building – indicate when the prayers will be offered eg at a midweek Eucharist or at a prayer group
- Candles to light – their use clearly needs to be well thought through. The symbol of light is powerful and many visitors take up the opportunity when offered. For those who are unused to praying it can be a helpful way of expressing a need or hope. Purpose built metal stands can be purchased, but a simple sand filled tray could be used – perhaps with tea candles.
- Creating a quiet space or corner might be helpful – but for many country churches the building “speaks” as a whole.
Some material to consider including in a leaflet to help people to pray:
There is a lot of material here. It is offered to illustrate different styles and approaches. Realistically, it is probably counter-productive to have more than a single A4 sheet folded to make a simple A5 leaflet. The choice of what goes into it is therefore critical.
Susan Howatch, the novelist, tells us of how she moved into a flat in the cathedral close at Salisbury;
“round and round the cathedral I walked….. eventually I began to go inside for a few minutes each day not to pray, because I did not know how, but simply to be and to hope that one day I might become a person more at peace with myself, become the person, whoever it was, that I was supposed to be. That describes the beginning of my religious conversion.”
Welcome to this church. You stand on holy ground. This church is a place of Christian witness and worship and celebrates the fullness of our spirituality. It encourages us to reflect on our values and all that gives our life meaning. You may like to spare a few moments in the quiet and holiness to reflect on the purpose of God for your life and to pray for yourself, those whom you love and those who maintain and worship in this house of God. You can do this whether or not you are a Christian.
This holy place gives opportunity for prayer and reflection. This is a place where God has been worshipped for hundreds of years; many have come here in times of happiness and in times of sorrow. Feel the presence of God here. Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46, verse 10. This is where “prayer has been valid” (T.S. Eliot) – and is still valid today. “This is none other than the house of God: this is the gate of heaven” (Genesis 28, verse 17)
This is a building which keeps alive our sense of the sacred in a busy world. Archbishop Robert Runcie
Find a place in the church to sit, be quiet and relax – pause for breath – ponder and wonder. Listen to your life. In the stillness you may become aware that the place is full of presence.
Prayer is not just words: it is the offering of our heart, mind, imagination and indeed our whole self to God. You may just sit in silence – God is with you.
There are prayers here to help focus your concerns and your joys. Choose which you find most helpful.
Let the peace of this place surround you as you sit or kneel quietly. Let the hurry and worry of your life fall away from you. God loves you and cares for you. He is here with you now – and always. Speak to him slowly and thoughtfully – give yourself time for him to bring things to mind.
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Lord thank you…. For your presence here, for the opportunity to pray, for the promise of peace, for the beauty of the world, the kindness of people…. For all those whom I love….. and who love me…. For your love towards me (and especially for ….). Help me to show my gratitude in deeds as well as words. Lord I am sorry….. for the times when I have been hasty or unkind (especially to .…) - the thought or act itself, failed to forgive or ask forgiveness, forgotten your presence, taken your love for granted. I thank you for your promise to forgive all those who turn back to you in penitence. We all have short comings, failures and sins. These can be barriers preventing us from being at peace with ourselves, with one another and with God. Tell God the way it is and be assured that he is working for your good. Lord I am troubled I am anxious and distressed for myself….. for others…. especially about ….. Help me to trust your love, for you carry our sorrows, teach me to act and speak in the way you want. Give me the wisdom to know when not to interfere. Calm my fears, for all things are in your hands. Lord I pray for….. My family….. and friends, my neighbours at home, at work, the ones I like…. and dislike…. For those who are ill …… for those who are troubled or who mourn, for the oppressed, for those involved in disaster or war. Bless them father in their various troubles and show me how I can help. |
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Can anybody pray? People have come to this church for hundreds of years to speak to God and to listen to him. They have brought their sorrows, their fears, their worries and the things that they are ashamed of. They have brought their human loves and joys, their thanks and celebrations. They have asked for forgiveness, for help for themselves and those they care about, and for light in their human darkness. You need no special words to pray. Sit quietly for a while. You are in God’s house and in his presence. Then you may like to read the words on this page once more, slowly, and let each sentence bring a response from your own life. Go on your way in peace.
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Some prayers for consideration:
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Our Father which art in heaven Give us this day our daily bread For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory for ever and ever. Amen. God be in my head, and in my understanding. God be in my eyes, and in my looking. God be in my mouth, and in my speaking. God be in my heart, and in my thinking. God be at my end, and in my departing. * O Lord forgive what I have been, bless what I am; and direct what I shall be. * God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change: the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference. Reinold Niebuhr Wait for the Lord; be strong and he shall comfort your heart; wait patiently for the Lord (Ps. 27 v 17) * God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (Ps. 46, v. 1) *Be still, and know that I am God. (Ps. 46, v. 10) Thanks be to thee, my Lord Jesus Christ, for all the benefits which thou has given me, for all the pains and insults which thou has borne for me, o most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may I know thee more clearly, love thee more dearly and follow thee more nearly. Prayer of St Richard Bishop of Chichester 1245-1253 Thanks for a beautiful world God we thank you for all the beauty of the world around us; for the wonder of your creation; for the beauty of lake and sky; of fields, animals and flowers. Help us to see afresh that you are the one from whom comes every perfect gift, and be grateful. Amen |
*Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love, Where there is injury, pardon, Where there is doubt, faith, Where there is despair, hope, Where there is darkness, light, Where there is sadness, joy. St Francis of Assisi Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things (from St Paul’s letter to Christians at Philippi) A simple prayer in troubled times God of love, turn our hearts to your ways, and give us peace. Amen A child’s prayer Lord in heaven, please listen to all those who are praying to you now. Those who are sad and crying, those who have lost friends and family, those who are alone and frightened. Help them to remember, that you are there and you are listening. Amen A prayer for our country Grant us Lord God, a vision of our land as your love would make it; a land where the weak are protected, and none go hungry or poor; a land where the benefits of civilised life are shared, and everyone can enjoy them; a land where different races and cultures live in tolerance and mutual respect; a land where peace is built with justice, and justice is guided by love, and give us the inspiration and courage to build it. Amen For travellers We commend to your safe keeping, father, ourselves as we travel today; and others who travel by land, sea or air. Give protection to all who journey, enfold them in your peace, and bring them safely to their journeys end; through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen |
Additional suggestions:
You may wish to consider:
- Having a space specifically to remember those who have died in thanksgiving and include a prayer for those who mourn
God of love we pray for any facing the bitterness of bereavement.
Give them your peace today. Help them to tread the lonely paths before them with faith and courage. Amen
- Designing a route round the church with explanations on cards near key objects and briefly include anything which is architecturally or historically interesting.
The arrangement of the furniture in most churches has a definite message. e.g. the font is nearly always near the door – because baptism is the rite of initiation into the Christian faith.- baptism as the water of life, cleansing and regenerating, the lectern as the word of life reminding us of the strength of tradition and culture - the pulpit from where we are helped to reflect on the application of what we have heard at the lectern to our lives, it is a place of “doing justice to our spirituality” - the altar - a stylised table the place of sharing and the rewards of self-giving.
Hymn numbers left up from the last service can signal to the visitor that this is a place of worship. An open bible left on the lectern may help someone to reconnect with a long forgotten passage of scripture.
· Producing a separate A5 sheet explaining the Christian Faith. The following piece is offered as one way to go about this. It is from the Church Guide of St Mary’s Chastleton and is reproduced here with grateful acknowledgement.
A word of explanation for those unfamiliar with Christianity
A church is a place of Christian worship, you stand on holy ground. You may like to spare a few moments in the quiet and holiness to reflect on the purpose of God for your life and to pray for yourself, those whom you love and those who maintain and worship in this house of God. You can do this whether or not you are a Christian. This church is a place of Christian witness and worship and celebrates the fullness of our spirituality.
This is a church in the Christian tradition. It is part of a worldwide, 2000 year old, community linking one quarter of the world’s population and many, many millions of people who have gone before us.
Along with people of other faith traditions, we believe that the world is God’s creation and that he is still active within it. Christians believe that Jesus is The Christ. He is part of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He was truly Divine and also fully human. He experienced joy, laughter, tears, pain, love, hunger, living a human life like ours.
Jesus died a barbaric, humiliating death by execution on a cross at the age of 33 in Palestine in the early part of the first century. The circumstances which led to his crucifixion at a time of political ferment were complex. Christians believe that God loved human kind so much that he was willing to suffer as we do, and so open up a new future for humanity in the midst of our violent world. The dead Christ rose again to Eternal Life.
We also believe that God is within us and we are within him through the power of the Holy Spirit. Through his teaching, death and Resurrection we are inheritors of Eternal Life – life in all its fullness. This is a quality of LIVING! which we are offered NOW.
There are many questions about suffering, evil and pain in the world which we can never answer. Christian faith is about believing in a loving God despite these unanswered questions. It is in the cross of Christ, where this world’s evil came face to face with God’s unconditional love, that we put our faith. In this church we worship God.
A PRAYER
Thank you, Heavenly Father,
for the love and devotion,
which first built and which now continues
to sustain this House of Prayer.
In the stillness of this moment give me
your peace which passes all understanding.
I lift myself, all those whom I love,
and all the things I care most about, to you.
Help me to learn what matters most about life,
and to give something back with thanksgiving
to all those who give to me. Amen.
The material here has been much influenced by prayer material in church guides within the Diocese of Oxford.
Publications dealing with this topic “Rural Visitors” by Leslie Francis and Jeremy Martineau £10.00 and “Seeds in Holy Ground; A Workbook for Rural Churches” £3.99 may be obtained from The Arthur Rank Centre, Stoneleigh Park, Warwicks CV8 2LZ.
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