Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Tuesday Prayer

I've never been part of a tradition that officially celebrated the Annunciation. To me, rediscovering or uncovering a celebration day allows for tremendous freedom to create and imagine new traditions and rituals. Whatever your experience with Annunciation, I pray that your creativity is also unleashed today.

Suggestions for celebrating Annunciation Day

Pray
"Creator and Lover, I delight in all the unexpected ways you make yourself known to me. Although I sometimes feel afraid or tired when I learn about the tasks you have prepared for me, I rejoice that you will always with be with me. I count on your strength to sustain me. You are my delight! With you, all things are truly possible. Amen."
Or
"Hail Mary, full of grace
Emmanuel, God is with you.
Blessed are you, and blessed is your child Jesus.
Holy Mary, mother to all.
Pray for God's people,
Now and always."
From the Feminist Rosary

Be your own spiritual director
Spend some time considering a question, such as:
What within you is waiting to be born?
How has God appeared to you recently and what was your reaction?
What, if any, connection do you feel with Mary?
Walk in beauty
Enjoy one of the many pieces of art depicting the Annunciation.

Spring to life
Rejoice in the connection between the day of the conception of Jesus and the promise of spring. If you live in a climate where spring is not yet in evidence outside, relax and enjoy the carefree abundance of spring indoors. Bring in flowers. Turn up the heat, put on your prettiest spring dress and dance around the living room. Snuggle with your pet or your child or your sweetie. Eat the rest of your Easter candy.

Read all about it
You might want to read the story of the annunciation from the book of Luke.
You can find detailed descriptions at Wikipedia and About.com. For an interesting article about the connection between the Annunciation and the celebrations of many other religions, check this out. Or take a trip to Bulgaria to a shrine dedicated to the Annunciation.

2 comments:

Terri said...

Prayers please for CPM, one of our blogger sisters who has had to delete her blog because members of her congregation found it and were angry. They felt she had been disrespectul of them...it's complicated...but the one "safe" place she had to process and "complain" is now defunct...and she is going through a lot...

Jennifer Garrison Brownell said...

Prayers for CPM and those who support her.