Monday, November 17, 2014

From Chapter 1: What is God About?

In traditional rites for the Holy Eucharist (Mass, Holy Communion,…), the opening call and response has to do with the reign or Kingdom of God. That call and response goes like this:

Leader: “Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”

Congregation:“And blessed be His [sic] Kingdom, now and forever. Amen.”1

In those two lines we sum up the church’s mission. But we often say those words unthinkingly, without awareness of their import. How many of us can say what the Kingdom of God is, or what it means to bless God or God’s kingdom? And if we cannot describe it in our own words, what do we mean when we say it? And if we do not know what it means, how can we possibly “work, pray, and give” to “bring in the Kingdom?”2

1 The Book of Common Prayer, p. 355

2 The Book of Common Prayer, p. 856