Reinventing The Our Father or Lord's Prayer

Reinventing The Our Father or Lord’s Prayer ©
By Michael Casey

Just so you know the pain monster is attacking me as I speak to you, and yes that is top of my wish list, my prayer list, the end to my pain, everybody else’s pain. I’ve just watched Elementary on tv and enjoyed it, it was about Redemption for Shinwell, he got his 2^nd 2^nd   chance as Sherlock called it. It was a nice ending to this episode. I’m not an intellectual who references popular culture to enhance meaning to what I write. I just enjoy stuff and when I write I mention the stuff that I like as a reference point, if its clever then that’s “luck”, it is never plotted to the nth degree, that would be so dull and boring. I usually write a new piece in an hour, or the length of an album playing in the background. Then I read it back to myself and my girls and only then do I know how good or “bad” it is. At that point I put it on my sites and hope the whole world gets the jokes or the point to what I’m talking about. Today Greece joined the fold of Michael Casey from Birmingham England fans, so if you all want mad dreams eat some Greek Feta cheese.

So what do I really want to talk about tonight? Well we all know the Our Father or Lord’s Prayer if you are not Catholic. It is a prayer for All Humanity, other prayers from other Faiths are available, as are from those who call themselves non-believers. Luckily God believes in us even if we don’t believe in him. Don’t you feel it’s as if kids have taken over the world, snotty nosed kids with teenage hormones, only these are who called the Government. You can pick any corner of the world and see just how stupid and uncivilised they are. Depending on where you live you will have some or perhaps no faith at all in your own local government.

In the 1960s there was so much energy and hope, we were going to the moon, now we could be entering a new Arms Race. Now the world seems to be more selfish, the ME generation, becoming the Spiteful Nation. I asked my small daughter just before I started talking to you what would she change with the world, to see if she would give me a spark to what I would say to you tonight. She said she hoped iPhones would not be invented for 50 more years, a ban if you like. She also hoped people would read books again. Because nobody reads anymore, they are forever on their phone but they are not actually talking to each other. They have the means of communication but actually don’t talk to each other.

I could write out the Our Father so you could read it for yourselves, but then I would be accused of brainwashing you, I want to be inclusive when I write, and I really believe a torrent of curses from the heart aimed at God are a prayer in themselves. But now I’m suddenly a Heretic and will be attacked, which is sad because God is love, an open palm not a closed fist. If you don’t understand that, which really is the most simple of concepts then I’d say you need to start your journey to God, because a closed mind will never allow Light to flood in.

Should we have new words and new hopes which allow us to talk to God? Yes and No, if it works then use it. A baker will list the ingredients he needs and prepare them in order to make really great bread. You might say it is his prayer. A mechanic will have his tools ready and the spare parts ready, he will strip and fix an engine and it will hum like a contented cat once the mechanic has done his magic. A teacher brings order to an enquiring mind, and gives the student the tools to learn and love learning, and to have useful information in their head.

You can go through the professions and as you describe their actions, their love of what they do then you can see it really is their prayer. Even Henry the road sweeper plays his part, without him we are overwhelmed by mess, he doesn’t get much thanks but without him and the dustmen who’ll take our rubbish away in the morning we as a society would die in our own filth. Everybody has a part to play, everybody is part of the jigsaw, God loves all of us, we are all special and heroes to him. In USA everybody seems to want to be called a Hero, and so they are, even if they dilute language by over use of superlatives.

So what am I saying? We are all God’s living prayer, and I know he cries often, because we ignore and forget him. We are we wasting our resources on Arms Races, we could be going back to the Stars together, to a Moon base, to exploring the deep deep oceans. So much can be done and should be done together for everybody, if only we were humble  enough to forgive our trespasses and we forgive those who trespass against us. Then we would create a Heaven on Earth for everybody.