Tuesday November 26
Thanksgiving looks to close to the ground human experience — visiting, cooking, eating, maybe watching some football, gatherings of different branches of your family. Thinking of that this morning reminded me of a blessing we posted on October 28, taken from the health care tradition of the Sisters of Mercy. As written for UDM it has the effect of bringing those who read it or listen to it close to the human fabric of our place of work. A good send off into this wonderful few days of respite.
Happy Thanksgiving to you.
john st sj
Hold up your hands and look at them
See your hands as God sees them.
Recognize the source of their power.
Imagine your life in and beyond the classroom. See the work of your hands in kitchens and corridors, on tennis and basketball courts, in dorms and dining rooms, at planning tables and parties and in gatherings of every kind. Choose to use your hands this year for good. Trust that your hands will know the right thing to do even when you do not; and know that, in every act, small or large, the work of your hands makes a difference.
Bless the work of our hands.
Bless the hands that build lasting things.
– hands of architects, engineers and chemists;
– of stone masons and day laborers;
– of writers and printers; of inventors and computer programmers;.
– of teachers and parents, negotiators and peacemakers, poets and musicians.
Bless the hands that build, we pray.
Bless the hands that heal.
– hands that skillfully clean and mend and comfort those in pain;.
– that create beauty in art and song, in homes, parks and gardens;
– that touch with strength, with compassion and tenderness, with healing power.
– that are lifted up in prayer asking for the transformation of difficult situations.
Bless the hands that heal, we pray.
Bless the hands that reach into the future
– hands that open with invitation and hope,
– that reach out to new possibilities
– that hold strong to what is just,
– that extend their passion for doing good toward a world in need.
Bless the hands that reach into the future, we pray.