Dear friends,
I came across this quote about prayer today from Ann Ulanov, a retired professor of religion and psychiatry at Union Theological Seminary in New York. It seems to speak to our current situation:
“Prayer enters the non-space, non-time zone, that part of our life that knows no boundaries and partakes of the timelessness of God’s eternity. There, each moment exists in a permanent ‘now,’ standing out from other moments as all there is. Thus we can pray across limitations of time and space. Our prayers for persons in the past and the future cross barriers of causality to participate in what happened then or will happen in a time and place yet to come….Intercessory prayer in this sense is for everyone….God’s space is the human family, what we are to each other and what we make possible for each other.”
In this time when our lives seem constrained and constricted by boundaries, I like the idea of a part of our life that knows no boundaries and partakes of God’s eternity. It’s a good reminder that our prayer and connections can transcend the limits of time and space. That is why coming together each evening at 8 for night prayers has become so important to many of us. When I first thought of doing this almost five weeks ago, I thought maybe four or five people would participate. Almost five weeks in and we rarely have fewer than 100, and often many times more than that. To me that underscores the deep yearning we have to be connected to one another and to God through our prayers. We will continue at tonight at 8. Instructions for how to access the service are below.
Parishioner Sibley Fleming is offering another way to be connected. She is moving her Monday evening yoga class to Zoom, beginning tonight at 6. All are welcome to participate. If you’re interested, email Sibley.
Parishioner Kristine Anderson is offering a way to express support and thanks to health care workers:
How can we thank the healthcare workers on the front lines – those who work in the ED’s and hospital wards caring for people with the virus? A friend in Sandy Springs has organized a a letter-writing effort to express our appreciation to people who continue to risk exposure to the virus on the job. She is delivering the letters and a light meal to healthcare workers she knows. They, in turn, will deliver the letters and meals to people working at Emory Hospital, St. Joseph’s, and Kennestone.
If you would like to write a letter, please put it in the box that will be placed by the front door at St. Dunstan’s on Wed, 4/22, and Thurs 4/23. The letters do not have to be in envelopes, and they can be typed or handwritten. You can also include art work or a prayer. She hopes to get over 150 letters by 4/26.
If you would like to make a donation for a meal or two, you can go to the paypal site – https://www.themealbridge.com/
I will take the letter box to my friend in Sandy Springs. If you have questions, please contact Kristine Anderson.
Look forward to seeing you tonight at 8.
How to access our livestream services (Night Prayers, M-F 8 p.m., Holy Eucharist, Sunday 10 a.m.)
- If you’re on Facebook, go to St. Dunstan’s Facebook page and click on the video (you may have to scroll down a bit). If you follow our page the livestreams should appear in your newsfeed.
- If you’re not on Facebook, go to our website, www.stdunstan.net, and click on the live worship button at either the top or bottom of our homepage. That will take you to our Facebook page (even if you’re not a FB member). Again, scroll down the page until you reach the livestream.
- And remember, if you miss a service you can always go back and watch it later. When a service is finished it is saved to the page as a video.