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Manuals
Overview of Prayer Services
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The purpose of the following prayer services is to provide new Lasallian Youth groups some models to build upon. You may use these prayer services as they are, or you may edit, combine, or delete to suit your needs. The following suggestions for prayer services are provided. Accompanying many of the prayer services is an explanation of the purpose, special instructions, as well as a list of supplies you may need.
General Suggestions
1. The call to worship can be written or can be spontaneous, however, whoever gives it needs to be prepared in advance. It should explain the process as well as develop the theme. As part of the call to worship, the Lasallian tradition encourages us to begin prayers with, “Let us remember that we are in the presence of God.” Recalling God’s presence helps focus everyone for prayer.
2. Find a quiet place. Obviously a first option is the school’s chapel, but every prayer service does not need to be in the chapel. Many times finding a quiet place outdoors creates an appropriate atmosphere.
3. Let the students facilitate as much as possible. Give them the readings in advance so they can practice. Have a leader who will introduce the prayer and lead the others. Again, prepare the facilitators beforehand. Help the readers understand that reading is an important part of the prayer, therefore, it should be done thoughtfully.
4. Shared prayer is a powerful part of many prayer services. It is not necessary to have shared prayer with every prayer service. When you do have shared prayer, encourage others to recite their petitions or reflections outloud. This may start slowly, but give them time. Even sitting quietly for a while can be powerful. Although there is a tendency to only offer prayers for relatives or friends, it may be helpful to encourage members to offer prayers concerning the topic of the prayer service. What has the prayer service made them think about? What do they hope for from this? What change do they want to see? You may prepare some members by giving the topic of the prayer service and asking that they reflect on a possible prayer they could offer. This may encourage others to offer their prayers. It is also helpful for the moderator to model this prayer.
5. Encourage members, especially the facilitators, to participate thoughtfully, prayerfully, meditatively. Take your time.
6. Use symbols whenever possible. Some of these services will have symbols already chosen. If they do not, feel free to choose an appropriate one.
7. Again, feel free to mix and match the readings and songs included in these prayer services to create your own.
8. If you can, print the words to the songs as it helps others to understand the meaning better.
9. The time allowed for these prayer service depends on your situation. Many of these prayer services will take between 20 and 40 minutes.
SERVICE AND JUSTICE PRAYERS
Purpose: To reflect upon the need for and to encourage students to do service. Others provide a context in which members have an opportunity to reflect upon their service experiences.
Special Supplies, Directions:
- Justice and Service: Casting Our Pebble In The Pond. You will need small pebbles for each person. If practical, this service should be done outside around a pool, lake, or pond. If it cannot be done outside, you can use a baby pool inside. This seems to be effective when it precedes or follows a day of service. After the reflection by Dorothy Day, each person should be invited to come up, one by one, to cast his or her pebble into the pond and to watch the waves form.
- The Call for Justice I and II: The purpose of this prayer is to demonstrate how we exclude people for superficial reasons and how powerful the need for forgiveness and inclusion is. This prayer is best used at the beginning and end of extended education or service activity. During the first part of the prayer, the members should sit in two circles with their backs to each other. The call to worship should introduce the ideas of exclusion and inclusion. The guided reflection should be a prayer in which each person is asked to recall a time in which they were excluded for superficial reasons such as age, gender, color of skin and the feelings they associated with that experience. The first part of the prayer ends with the participants still in two separate circles. The second part of the prayer begins in the same fashion. To form the circle of love, the leader invites the participants to form one large circle.
FAITH AND COMMUNITY PRAYERS
Purpose: These prayers emphasize the importance of faith and community and they give the participants a chance to reflect on their own experience of faith and community.
Special Supplies and Directions:
- God’s Presence: Ask several students to prepare a reflection on a time when they felt especially close to God.
- Faith: You will need to prepare incense.
- Spirit of Faith: Fill a glass bowl or several glass bowls with rubbing alcohol. If you have one bowl of alcohol, it should be lit at the beginning of the prayer. The alcohol will burn and produce a large flame. If you use several bowls, light one at the beginning of each reading. You might want to practice this before the actual service.
SPECIAL TOPIC PRAYERS
Special Instructions and Supplies:
- Rekindling our Zeal: Each participant will need a candle, a piece of paper, and a pencil. You will need a bucket or can, in which to place the burning paper. After students write the areas that they need to change, they light their paper and place it in the bucket. After each person has burned their papers, they then light a candle.
- Senior Recognition: This is usually done at the last meeting of the year for seniors. Moderators should prepare some kind of certificate or symbol for each senior.
-You are Dust and to Dust You will Return: This prayer is used on or near Ash Wednesday.
- Brother James Miller: This prayer is used to commemorate the death of Br. James Miller who was murdered on February 13, 1982 in Guatemala.
-Advent Prayer: This is used at advent time to reemphasize our commitment to service and to prepare for the Christmas season.
- Commissioning Service: This prayer can be done at the beginning of the school year, semester or summer. During the commissioning, students are anointed with oil.
- Ethnic Awareness: This is often used during Black History Month to focus on issues of inclusion and exclusion. The “Eye of the Beholder” video demonstrates how we learn to separate people from ourselves using artificial barriers.
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