January 18, Our First Meeting

Last evening seven parishioners met to encourage each other in Daily Prayers. After each briefly shared her or his own personal prayer life, we previewed our eight weeks together, provided one another with phone numbers, email addresses, and prepared ourselves to worship God in Evening Prayer. We began by singing the Church's old "Lamp-lighting Hymn," the Phos Hilaron, and later St. Ambrose's "O Trinity, O Blessed Light," shared Psalm 80, listened to Jim read from Ephesians 5, and at the end before Fr. Birch blessed us, we prayed the Litany, asking among many petitions that God bless Grace Gutekunst who could not be with us.

Several of us took home a copy Robert Benson's Daily Prayer, an especially good book for anyone wanting to use the Daily Office, and perhaps next week we'll hear how it went from those of us who are trying it out.

Telling one another that we'd like to meet again next Thursday, the following went home with lots to remember and two essays to read (The Rise and Fall [and Rise Again] of the Daily Office and Learning the Ancient Rhythms of Prayer):

• Tom Bryan (328-3334) Tom_bryan@bellsouth.net
• June Harnack (626-8535) rjharnack@yahoo.com
• Leslie Farris (228-0277) momfarris3@aol.com
• Jim Farris (228-0277) momfarris3@aol.com
• Mason Smith (623-0692) mason.smith@eku.edu
• Carol Poson (985-5572) casposton@yahoo.com
• Fr. Birch Rambo (623-1226) tbrambo@bellsouth.net
• Andy Harnack (582-3368) andrew.harnack@eku.edu

Next week we--and others with us, we hope--will meet on Thursday, January 25, at First United Methodist Church, the corner of Main and Lancaster Streets, at 7:00 p.m. in the Hartmon Room to talk about "The History of Daily Prayer" and to worship the Holy Trinity together during Evening Prayer.