Brian’s Reflection: Wednesday, October 7, 1946

I forgave the DAR many years ago. You
lose a lot of time hating people.

Prayer begins where human capacity ends.

- Marian Anderson. On this day, 1954, she
became the first African-American person
hired by the Metropolitan Opera


Oh how I wish that Marian Anderson could have been my “guardian angel”, whispering in my ear over the past four decades! I can’t say that I have spent the last four decades “hating” homophobic, ignorant people. But it comes close. And it has deeply affected my life. How people, institutions, churches, politicians, etc felt about Gayfolk has been the standard by which I have judged their value as persons. It has filled me with anger all these years. What is interesting, of course, is that despite my vocation as a Christian priest, I never “overcame” it. Not even yet. It has shaped my Life. And my view of Humanity. There have been positive and very negative dimensions to this. I have learned how prejudice and condemnation wither a person.

So: I guess I really have to get working on this, yes? It would be bad to die to this World in this condition!

As to Prayer. I disagree with Ms. Anderson. I do not believe in a “God” to whom we pray when our human capabilities and capacities end. That is magic, not prayer. “God” is not what intervenes with supernatural meddling to supercede human nature. At least that is what I think. Prayer is a relationship with the energy we intuit that will reveal to us the power of being Human and “guide” us in discerning the Path Ahead. So, we don’t start praying when we are at our “wits end”. Prayer is a life-long connection to the mysterious forces that aid us in living fully mature human lives. When we pray, we are not asking some Diety to “take over”. We are tapping into the unknown depths of our human capacities. We human beings are amazing!

Ms. Anderson encourages us to let go of hate or anything that impedes our functioning as the person we are. And to remember to “pray always”, as St. Paul said – stay in touch with the amazing resources we have to “take hold of Life” !!

Brian+