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22/09/2020
A reflection and prayer to start the day with the Rev Dr Rosa Hunt, co-principal of the South Wales Baptist College.
Last on
Tue 22 Sep 2020
05:43
±«Óătv Radio 4
Script:
Good morning. Today is the autumnal equinox. This means that from now on the days will be getting shorter than the nights. Summer has officially gone.Â
The rhythms of the seasons and indeed of the secular and ecclesiastical calendars play a very important part in our sense of security and well-being. I remember how disturbing it was to watch the sun disappear at 11 am during a solar eclipse one year – even the birds went quiet. It all seemed so unnatural. This isn’t a new discovery, of course -thousands of years ago, the author of the book of Genesis described God making the sun and moon serve as signs “to mark sacred times, and days and years.” And perhaps the most recent and striking example of the importance of rhythm and routine to the human mind was observed during lockdown. When our families’ normal routines of school, work, commute and church disappeared overnight, we all felt very disoriented, and quite exhausted. The stress disturbed our own biological rhythms, and it was widely reported that people weren’t sleeping very well.
St Benedict knew all this when he created his Rule for monks to live by, structuring each day with a regular rhythm of prayer, meals and work. Human beings thrive on rhythm and we are naturally drawn to it, whether it’s a recurring theme in music or poetry, or the weekly trip to the pub on a Friday night. And of course the rhythm of the seven day week, with its Sabbath rest, comes straight from the pages of the Bible.
Father God,We thank you for the rhythms that you have put in place around us, from the regular beating of our hearts to the seasons which come and go, each with their own challenges and their own beauty. Give us wisdom to order our days so that we can thrive on regular rhythms of work, play and rest,Amen
The rhythms of the seasons and indeed of the secular and ecclesiastical calendars play a very important part in our sense of security and well-being. I remember how disturbing it was to watch the sun disappear at 11 am during a solar eclipse one year – even the birds went quiet. It all seemed so unnatural. This isn’t a new discovery, of course -thousands of years ago, the author of the book of Genesis described God making the sun and moon serve as signs “to mark sacred times, and days and years.” And perhaps the most recent and striking example of the importance of rhythm and routine to the human mind was observed during lockdown. When our families’ normal routines of school, work, commute and church disappeared overnight, we all felt very disoriented, and quite exhausted. The stress disturbed our own biological rhythms, and it was widely reported that people weren’t sleeping very well.
St Benedict knew all this when he created his Rule for monks to live by, structuring each day with a regular rhythm of prayer, meals and work. Human beings thrive on rhythm and we are naturally drawn to it, whether it’s a recurring theme in music or poetry, or the weekly trip to the pub on a Friday night. And of course the rhythm of the seven day week, with its Sabbath rest, comes straight from the pages of the Bible.
Father God,We thank you for the rhythms that you have put in place around us, from the regular beating of our hearts to the seasons which come and go, each with their own challenges and their own beauty. Give us wisdom to order our days so that we can thrive on regular rhythms of work, play and rest,Amen
Broadcast
- Tue 22 Sep 2020 05:43±«Óătv Radio 4
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