For decades we’ve been singing “Dona Nobis Pacem” at the end of this annual midwinter holiday music service. I suspect we will continue this tradition for years to come. Dona nobis pacem is Latin for ‘grant us peace.’ It’s a very simple prayer set to very simple, very beautiful music.
I note that in 1936 the British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote a cantata entitled “Dona Nobis Pacem” for orchestra, chorus and soprano and baritone soloists. He wrote it as a plea for peace in response to rising fascism in Europe.[1] It’s not the piece we sing here, but the sentiment—a plea for peace in response to fascism—I believe resonates with our own yearnings today in response to new authoritarian leaders and governments with fascist impulses, language and policies emerging in various places around the world and certainly within the United States. This prayer, dona nobis pacem, grant us peace, feels as necessary and resonant today as ever.
Spirit of Life, precious and loving God, ancient Goddess, great mystery, source of our coming into and going out from our lives, grant us peace. Bring us peace. Bestow upon us peace. Let us live in peace. Most importantly: help us, guide us, support us in using our bodies, our spirits, our time, our energy, our love, our compassion in the service of peace.
May we create peace.
May we live in peace.
May there be peace in our hearts. In the darkness of this late autumn, in the darkness of the coming winter, as we take rest, as we take time for contemplation, as we turn inward for nurture and sustenance, as we sit comfortably in a favorite spot, perhaps beneath the light of a favorite lamp, with a book, or cup of tea or hot chocolate, maybe a beloved pet nearby or in our lap, may we find peace within. May we drink from our deepest wells and find peace within. May we pull back from all the worries and concerns we carry through our days; may we pull back even from the good things, the joys, the future plans about which we are excited, and find peace within. May we sit quietly with the peace within. May we center and ground ourselves in the peace within. And may that peace be a blessing in our lives.
May there be peace in the lives of our loved-ones, our family and friends, our neighbors, those closest to us, including those members and friends of our UUSE community—those present, those far away. In the darkness of this late autumn, in the darkness of the coming winter, may they have moments of rest and time for contemplation. May they have time for the inward turn, the inward gaze in search of nurture and sustenance. May they have opportunities to drink from their deepest wells and find peace within. May they have moments in which to pull back from all their worries and concerns, and from the good things too, to find peace within, to sit quietly with the peace within, to center ground themselves in the peace within. And may that peace be a blessing in their lives, and in our lives too.
May there be peace in the lives of those in our wider community whom we don’t know—the mail carrier, the fire fighter, the Emergency Medical Technician, the grocery store bagger, the bank teller, the receptionist at the doctor’s office, not to mention the nurse, the doctor, the home health aide and the CNA, the call-center person on the phone who is trying to help, the police officer, the social worker, the teachers, the snow plow driver, the landscaper, the homeless person on the corner, the addict seeking treatment or still lost in the throes of addiction, all those suffering in some quiet, private way, all those who are vulnerable in their lives in some way, and those who aren’t—may there be peace in their lives. In the darkness of this late autumn, in the darkness of the coming winter, may they have moments of rest and time for contemplation. May they have time for the inward turn, the inward search for nurture and sustenance. May they have opportunities to drink from their deepest wells and find peace within. May they have moments in which to pull back from all their worries and concerns, and even from the good things too, to find peace within, to sit quietly with the peace within, to center and ground themselves in the peace within. And may that peace be a blessing in their lives and our larger collective life too.
And, with the coming of the light in this dark season, may that peace within ripple out, radiate out, emanate out, extend out beyond us, beyond our loved-ones beyond our communities to our whole nation. Yes, Spirit of Life, precious and loving God, ancient Goddess, great mystery, source of our coming into and going out from our lives: may there be peace in our nation. Where there is discord, disagreement and polarization, may we strive to find common ground; may we strive to remember together all the founding promises of life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, the pursuit of tranquility. Where there are the stirrings of political or ideological violence, or actual political or ideological violence, may our instincts for dialogue, listening and understanding prevail and bring peace. Where there is hatred, anger and fear of the unknown, of difference, of the ‘other’ whoever that may be in our collective life, may our instincts toward fairness, toward compassion, toward justice, toward healing, toward atonement, toward love prevail and bring peace. Despite our differences, despite seemingly intractable problems, may we live in peace in our nation.
And may that peace ripple out, radiate out, emanate out, extend out beyond our borders, carrying on the wind our unceasing prayer: May there be peace in the world. Where there is war, may there be peace. In Sudan, may there be peace. In Myanmar, may there be peace. In Ukraine, may there be peace. In Syria, may there be peace. In Israel, may there be peace. In Gaza, may there be peace. In Lebanon, may there be peace. Wherever there is armed conflict, wherever there are civilian casualties, wherever people are forced to flee their homes and communities to escape violence and war, to leave behind everything they’ve ever known, to become refugees, may there be peace.
In the darkness of this late autumn, in the darkness of the coming winter, we know the earth will continue to turn. We know the light will return. We know the days will begin to grow longer. With the coming light, balancing the beautiful darkness, may there be peace. May we live in peace. May we create peace.
Amen and blessed be.
[1] You can experience a recent performance of Vaughan Williams’ “Dona Nobis Pacem” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxfwmrV_D5s.
Comments