Jason Heron, who teaches theology at Mount Marty College, and his familyĭr. “Somewhat like asking a person, ‘how are you?’ Well, do I really want to know? Or am I just asking to be polite? Similarly, I can say, ‘you are in my thoughts and prayers’ as I mosey along in my day without taking the time to actually pray,” she said. “I think we all run the risk of making this a trite and hollow phrase if we don’t follow through with what we have said,” Henrickson said. “What a humble gesture to bring another before the throne of the One who created us, loves and asks us to love our neighbor. “When authentic, thoughts and prayers are a beautiful gift of self, united to the giver of all gifts, God,” said Teresa Henrickson, a counselor and spiritual director, and a member of Sacred Heart, Yankton. An essential key to loving our neighbor is to be authentic in our words. “Prayer is such a powerful witness and it always gives me strength,” she said.Ĭlearly then, there can be and often is a deeper meaning to “thoughts and prayers”. Mary’s School (Sioux Falls) staff and students saying they’re praying for me. ![]() Every so often, for example, I get a postcard from the St. “Fellow cancer patients, family members, co-workers of family members, health-care practitioners all have reached out to me through cards, notes and conversation. “I have been greatly impressed – and often surprised – throughout my cancer journey by the number and variety of ways people have let me know they are praying for me,” Kueter said. My reaction then is one of gratitude,” she said. “However, I think it’s different when used by people you know. Andrew Thuringer, associate pastor at St. I hear it as a catch-all phrase meaning, ‘We need to show we care but don’t really know what to say,’” said Maricarrol Kueter, a veteran South Dakota journalist who has written occasionally for The Bishop’s Bulletin. “Usually, it’s something of a throwaway phrase you hear from TV announcers after revealing that someone has died. ![]() ![]() How the term “thoughts and prayers” is used, and who is using it, can provide the needed context to clarify the intent. And one of the clearest expressions of this unity among the Church is that we hold each other in prayer and rely on the prayers of others,” he said. So, when one of us suffers, we all suffer. “When Catholics receive the Eucharist they are not only united to Christ, but to his entire body, the Church. We share a common union (communion) with Christ,” said Fr. I’m much more interested in the prayers,” he said. “When I hear it, my first reaction is ‘well, I don’t really care if you think about me, but please pray for me.’ What do people mean by thoughts? Do they just take some time in a comfy chair to sit and think about people. “In some ways I sympathize with the people who find the phrase ‘thoughts and prayers’ a little worn out,” said Fr. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39 This is the greatest and the first commandment. “You shall love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. The deeper meaning of thoughts and prayers relates precisely to the command to love our neighbor. ![]() As people of faith, we know that nothing could be further from the truth. So when someone offers another “thoughts and prayers” it might be taken as meaningless and ineffective or simply a way to relieve oneself of responsibility by reciting a trite phrase. There is no denying the world around us is less religiously aware than it used to be.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |