Thanksgiving is just about here and we generally find the need to stop our normal lives and gather as a family for dinner and maybe football. The ritual that goes with Thanksgiving dinner is a prayer that acknowledges God’s blessing on the gathering and the bounty represented by the plentiful food on the table.
The prayer part has always been something I have secretly shied away from since I was very young. Part of the reason has been that I believe prayer to be a transforming experience with powerful consequences. I first began to think of prayer as a source of confusion. Raised in a Spanish speaking fundamentalist and evangelical community made me initially think of prayer as a conversation with God.
The idea of prayer as a personal conversation with God appeared to be very different from that of my Catholic friends as they prayed by reciting texts they had memorized during their church upbringing. Also, they called their praying “rezar” and I call mine “orar.”
I did not think to look up the difference in the words and the semantics involved until I grew up and was concentrating on other challenges. Thinking back, I sometimes regret not knowing the difference during my childhood because it would have helped me bond better with my friends.
During those days there were moments of great stress that led us to pray together often. I remember one particular moment at a basketball game between our team from Horace Mann and a Skinner Junior High team in North Denver that had us one point behind with seconds to go.
A couple of my teammates suggested that we ask God’s help to win the game. So we gathered and they led us in prayer with a “Hail Mary full of grace” that I did not know.
We lost the game and I somehow felt that it was my fault because I did know the words and God was watching. I never let my teammates know that I did not know the prayer because I was not Catholic and, in the heat of the moment, they did not notice.
Because of my early experiences, I began to shy away from the act of praying and would find reasons not to participate even during a church service. It was not until I was a university student that I took on the task of trying to understand this aspect of my character.
I came to accept the notion of prayer as a transforming experience that requires serious intent. It cannot be something that one just says/recites.
Serious prayer is an act of separation from everyday life, transition into a new vision of possibilities and the discovery of new insights drawn from the eternal realm. Prayer uses words, whether in group recitation or personal, as a way to start the journey to a place that lies beyond the words.
A Thanksgiving prayer provides an opportunity to take stock of ourselves and relive family love and family togetherness. It is a way of transforming the gathering into something magical.
So, Thursday we will seek to find genuine togetherness. We will gather, watch a little TV, eat at the dinner table and perhaps discuss our plans for Christmas and New Year’s. We may want to construct or distribute a list of children that will be waiting for Santa Clause to come with presents. In the midst of that however, it is important to have a moment of prayer.
The views expressed by David Conde are not necessarily the views of laVozColorado. Comments and responses may be directed to news@lavozcolorado.com.
