Sunday 29 March •Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord
Presence
I pause for a moment, aware that God is here.
I think of how everything around me,
the air I breathe, my whole body,
is tingling with the presence of God.
Freedom
Heavenly Father, make me conscious of whatever burden I am carrying today and give me the grace to place it at the foot of Your Cross and so enter freely into this time of prayer.
Consciousness
Dear Lord, by spending time with You, may I become more like You, so that others will see Christ in me and come to know Your love.
The Word of God
Matthew 27:11-54 NRSVue
11Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say so.” 12But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. 13Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you?” 14But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.
15Now at the festival the governor was accustomed to release a prisoner for the crowd, anyone whom they wanted. 16At that time they had a notorious prisoner called Jesus Barabbas. 17So after they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” 18For he realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. 19While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.” 20Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. 21The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” All of them said, “Let him be crucified!” 23Then he asked, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”
24So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” 25Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” 26So he released Barabbas for them, and after flogging Jesus he handed him over to be crucified.
27Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. 28They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29and after twisting some thorns into a crown they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30They spat on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
32As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross. 33And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35And when they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots;, 36then they sat down there and kept watch over him. 37Over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
38Then two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads 40and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, 42“He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. 43He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to, for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’ ” 44The rebels who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.
45From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. 49But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. 51At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 53After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. 54Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”,
Inspiration
We are now moving into Holy Week. The mood changes, and a solemnness descends. What thoughts and feelings arise as you read details of the passion? You might find similarities to the suffering in your own life. Maybe you were wrongly accused, perhaps people were unsupportive when you needed to be backed up, or you went along with the crowd and now feel guilty because you didn’t speak out? You might talk to God about the thoughts that arise in you. You may wish to pray for the healing of hurts or feel called to remain silent and stay with what is in your heart.
Conversation
The gift of speech is a wonderful gift.
May I use this gift with kindness.
May I be slow to utter harsh words,
hurtful words, and words spoken in anger.
Conclusion
Filled with the loving presence of God,
I ask Him to bless me and guide my steps
as I go to do His work in my daily life.
Amen
Thank you for praying with Sacred Space today.
Presence Guide
What is it?
Becoming present through connecting with your breath, body, sounds, and to whatever is going on in the present moment, in order to centre yourself for this time of prayer.
Practice:
Awareness of the Presence of God
If someone asked you to give them another word for ‘God’, you could use the word ‘Presence’, for that is what God is. When Moses asked Yahweh his name, Yahweh replied, ‘I am who am’ and this means ‘I am present’. God is really saying, ‘I shall be there for you.’ God is intimately present to everything, and especially to us. Jesus’s name is Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us’. Matthew’s Gospel ends with the marvellous statement: Know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.
(from Finding God in All Things by Brian Grogan SJ)
Body Exercise
Sit in your chair, upright but comfortable, with your back supported. Let your body relax (without slouching), with your feet on the floor in front of you and your hands at rest on your thighs or joined in your lap.
Close your eyes, or fix them on some point in front of you. Now let your whole attention focus on what you can feel in your body. You may start at your feet and work upwards, letting your attention dwell, perhaps only for a few seconds, on whatever part of the body you can feel, shifting attention from one part of the body to the other, although the longer you can hold attention on one part, the better. Your attention is on what you are feeling, not on thoughts about feeling. If you are uncomfortable, or itch or want to move position, just acknowledge the discomfort, assure yourself that it is alright and, without moving, continue to focus attention on what you can feel in the body.
The mind rarely leaves us long in peace to do this, but begins to demand attention with comments and questions: This is a waste of valuable time. What has this to do with prayer? What is the point of it? Deal with the questions and comments as you dealt with the itch; acknowledge them without judgement, then return to feeling the body.
You can, if you like, move into more explicit prayer by repeating to yourself St Paul’s phrase, In him I live, and move, and have my being.
(adapted from God of Surprises by Gerry W Hughes SJ)
Breathing Exercise
This exercise involves concentrating all your attention on the physical feelings of breathing in and breathing out, without deliberately changing the rhythm of your breathing.
Focus attention on feeling the cold air entering your nostrils and the warm air when you exhale. At first you may become self-conscious about your breathing and find it becomes irregular, but this does not, as a rule, continue. If it were to do so, and you find yourself becoming breathless, then this exercise is not for you at present.
Most people find that on doing this exercise the pattern of their breathing changes, the breath becoming deeper and slower, and they begin to feel drowsy. In itself, it is a very good relaxation exercise, but if you care to use it for more explicit prayer, then let the inbreathing express all that you long for in life, however impossible it may seem in practice, and let the out-breath express your surrender of everything to God, all of your life with its worries, sins, guilt and regrets.
It is important to do this without self-judgement, whether of approval or disapproval. Keep your attention fixed on your desire to hand over all these worries about yourself, and do not clutch at them as if they were a treasured possession.
(adapted from God of Surprises by Gerry W Hughes SJ)
Listening Exercise
Sit in your chair, upright but comfortable, with your back supported.
Now just notice the sounds that you can hear, sounds far away. Just hear them, don’t even try to name them….
Notice fainter sounds, then sounds which are nearer. Just listen, become aware of them….
And the sound of your own breath and your own heartbeat, faint, but your own rhythm of life….
And the sound of silence in your place of prayer, the silence within yourself….
Listen like this for a few minutes.
(adapted from Praying in Lent by Donal Neary SJ)
Freedom Guide
What is it?
This is about recognising the gift of free will given us by God, and offering this gift back to Him, so that we can align our will to that of God’s will for us, and to be open to His will during our prayer.
Practice:
Praying for freedom
This prayer helps us to put ourselves at God’s disposal. Saint Ignatius describes this ‘Preparatory prayer’ as asking for ‘the grace that all my intentions, actions and operations may be directed purely to the praise and service of the Divine Majesty.’ (The Spiritual Exercises, no. 46) You might try these words:
Lord, I so wish to prepare well for this time.
I so want to make all of me ready and attentive and available to you.
Please help me to clarify and purify my intentions.
I have so many contradictory desires.
I get preoccupied with things that don’t really matter or last.
I know that if I give you my heart,
whatever I do will follow my new heart.
In all that I am today, all that I try to do,
all my encounters, reflections – even the frustrations and failings
and especially in this time of prayer,
in all of this, may I place my life in your hands.
Lord, I am yours. Make of me what you will. Amen.
Consciousness Guide
What is it?
This is similar to the Examen prayer that is part of the Ignatian tradition, and involves looking back over the past 24 hours, to see where God has been working in your life. We can look at moments of both “consolation”, where we felt God’s love, grace and mercy, and also at moments of “desolation” where we may not have experienced God’s presence, or may have turned away from God and from love in some way, and fallen short. We give thanks to God for what was good, and ask God’s mercy and forgiveness for what was difficult or for where we failed.
Practice:
Introduction to the Review of Consciousness
If it is true that God is at work in every detail of our lives, how do we begin to recognise his action and our reaction?
At the end of the day, especially before going to sleep, the mind, without any conscious effort on our part, tends to play back some of the events of the day so vividly that if the day has been particularly eventful we can find it difficult to get to sleep. We may find ourselves re-enacting a quarrel, thinking of the clever and cutting things we might have said if we had been more quick-witted, and so on.
The Review of Consciousness is based on this natural tendency of the mind. It can help us to be more aware of God’s presence and action in our daily lives, and to be more sensitive to where we are cooperating with God’s grace and where we are refusing it.
How to do a Review of Consciousness
Let your mind drift over the last 24 hours, refraining from any self-judgement, whether of approval or disapproval, attending to and relishing only those moments of the day for which you are grateful. Even the most harrowing day includes some good moments, if only we take the trouble to look – it might be the sight of a raindrop falling, or the fact that I can see at all. When people attempt this exercise, they are usually surprised at the number and variety of good moments in the day which otherwise would have been quickly forgotten – obscured, perhaps, by any painful experience in the day. Having remembered the events for which you are grateful, thank and praise God for them.
After thanksgiving, the next step is to recall your inner moods and feelings, noting, if you can, what led to them, but again refraining from any self-judgement. Be with Christ as you look at these moods and beg him to show you the attitudes which underlie them. The important thing is not to analyse our experience, but to contemplate it in Christ’s presence and let him show us where we have let him be in us and where we have refused to let him be. We thank him for the times we have ‘let his glory through’ and ask forgiveness for the times we have refused him entry. He never refuses forgiveness. He knows our weakness far better than we do. All we have to do is show it to him and he can transform our weakness into strength. We can conclude with a short prayer, that also looks forward to the day to come, and asks for God’s help.
Prayer for Review of Consciousness
Lord, you know me better than I know myself. Your Spirit pervades every moment of my life. Thank you for the grace and love you shower on me. Thank you for your constant, gentle invitation to let you into my life. Forgive me for the times I have refused that invitation, and closed myself off from you. Help me in the day to come, to recognise your presence in my life, to open myself to you, to let you work in me, to your greater glory. Amen.
Scripture Guide
What is it?
This is where we read a passage of scripture, slowly and mindfully, and see what strikes us or catches our attention. How is God speaking to us through His Word? Below are some thoughts and exercises on how to do this.
Practice:
Listening to the Word
Read over the passage, slowly, several times and see if any word or phrase stands out for you, and stay with that phrase for as long as you like before turning your attention to any other.
The process is a bit like sucking a boiled sweet (for US readers, hard candy). Do not try to analyse the phrase, just as you would not normally break up a boiled sweet and subject it to chemical analysis before tasting it.
Often a phrase will catch the attention of our subconscious mind’s needs long before our conscious mind is aware of the reason for the attraction. That is why it is good to remain with the phrase for as long as possible without trying to analyse it.
I may find all sorts of distractions running through my mind, but some thoughts, far from being distractions, can become the substance of my prayer. It is as though the phrase of Scripture is a searchlight which plays upon my stream of consciousness, thoughts, memories, reflections, daydreams, hopes, ambitions, fears, and I pray out of the mixture of God’s Word and my inner thoughts and feelings.
Scripture as a Searchlight
The opening verse of the Bible, “Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep and God’s spirit hovered over the water”, is describing a present state of affairs, not a past event, and when I pray from the Scriptures I am letting the Spirit of God hover over the chaos and darkness of my being.
When I allow the Word of God to hover over my preoccupations, then anything can happen, for he is the God of surprises. It is important that I do not hide my inner chaos from the Word of God or from myself. We are often so trained that we think it wrong to allow any negative feelings entry into our prayer, especially negative feelings about God. We have to learn to grow out of this training, expressing our feelings and thoughts freely before God and trusting that he is big enough to take our tantrums. There is no point in pretending before God, who knows us better than we know ourselves.
There is no thought, feeling or desire within you which cannot become the substance of your prayer in the light of God’s Word, when you know that God loves the chaos that is you and that his Spirit working in you can do infinitely more than you can think or imagine.
Dealing with Distractions
Trying to pray like this, it may well happen that the mind begins to fill with questions and apparent distractions. How do I know that I am not deceiving myself? How do I know these words are true, that God really does communicate himself through them? Do I really have faith in God? These are valid questions, but for now let them wait. When a child is frightened in the night, the mother goes and lifts the child and says, ‘It’s all right,’ and the child gradually quietens. But if she has a prodigy on her hands who replies, ‘But mother, what epistemological and metaphysical assumptions are you making in that statement and what empirical evidence can you adduce in support of your contention?’ then mother really has a problem in her arms. In prayer we are like that impossible child if we refuse to listen to God until he has measured up to whatever criteria we may care to lay down. We communicate with him first with our hearts. The heart is not mindless: it has reasons, deeper than we can see at first with our conscious minds.
Having left the questions aside for now, what do I do with all the other distractions which flood my mind? I may begin to wonder if I left the gas on, or remember an email I forgot to send. If it is urgent, like the gas, the safest thing is to go and check. With matters that can wait, perhaps jot them down for later. Anything else which comes to mind, far from being a distraction, can become the substance of my prayer.
Inspiration Guide
In this section we give you some thoughts and impressions on which to reflect, in order to help you dive more deeply into the scriptures, and apply them to your own life. These are the thoughts of individuals and so there may be some that speak to you and others that don’t, even some things you agree with and others you don’t. Feel free to take on board only that which you find helpful and simply let go of the rest. Sometimes a word or idea may challenge us, and we may like to bring this to prayer to see if the Lord is speaking to us in a new way, or wants us to learn or understand something new. We pray for open and receptive hearts and minds and try to leave our preconceptions behind as we enter into this “Sacred Space” with God.
Conversation Guide
What is it?
This is the part of the prayer where we talk to Jesus (or whichever Person of the Trinity we relate to most), about what we have just read in scripture or are experiencing within ourselves, just as we would talk to a dear friend. This is often called having a “heart-to-heart” with the Lord, and it can be helpful to visualise Jesus standing or sitting next to us, and picturing his face and his gaze on us. It is important to both talk to the Lord, but also to listen to what He is saying in response. This is a place to come just as we are, with no pretence – we can be totally ourselves before our God who loves us.
Practice:
Conversing with Jesus
Imagine you see Jesus sitting close to you. In doing this you are putting your imagination at the service of your faith. Jesus isn’t here in the way you are imagining him, but he certainly is here, and your imagination helps to make you aware of this. Now, speak to Jesus …. if no one is around, speak out in a soft voice …. Listen to what Jesus says to you in reply, or what you imagine him to say …. That is the difference between thinking and praying. When we think, we generally talk to ourselves. When we pray, we talk to God.
Anthony de Mello SJ, Sadhana pages 78-79
Saint Ignatius calls this conversation a ‘colloquy’, and says:
A colloquy is made, properly speaking, in the way one friend speaks to another, or a servant to one in authority – now begging a favour, now accusing oneself of some misdeed, now telling one’s concerns and asking counsel about them. …. In the colloquies we ought to converse and beg according to the subject matter; that is, in accordance with whether I find myself tempted or consoled, desire to possess one virtue or another, or to dispose myself in one way or another, or to experience sorrow or joy over the matter I am contemplating. And finally I ought to ask for what I more earnestly desire in regard to some particular matters.
The Spiritual Exercises nos 54, 199
Conclusion Guide
This is simply a moment to finish with a final thought or prayer, maybe giving thanks to God or setting an intention for yourself as you go back into the business of the day and your normal life.