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O HEAVENLY KING:
REFLECTIONS
on a
HYMN to the HOLY SPIRIT
-- in 10 parts --
After the Lord's Prayer, one of the most frequently said/chanted/sung hymn/prayers in
the Orthodox Church is O Heavenly King, a prayer to the Holy Spirit. This hymn is
appointed to be sung in several places for the Divine Services of the Great Feast of
Pentecost, a several-day feast celebrating the Descent of the Holy Spirit. The first day
of the feast is Trinity Sunday, because with the descent of the Holy Spirit, all Three
Persons of the Holy Trinity reveal themselves, for the salvation of the world. The second
day of the feast is Holy Spirit Day. For the Orthodox Faith, the revelation and descent of
the Holy Spirit and the revelation of the Unity of the Holy Trinity are two aspects of the
same reality.
We offer to you, our website visitors, this prayer/meditation on each of the 10 phrases
of this magnificent hymn --- to commemorate the descent of the Holy Spirit not just on
Pentecost, but every day of the year. May it be a source of blessing for you.
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1. O heavenly King
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2. The Comforter
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3. The Spirit of Truth
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4. Who art everywhere
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5. And fillest all things
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6. Treasury of blessings
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7. And Giver of Life
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8. Come and abide in us
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9. And cleanse us from every impurity
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10. And save our souls, O Good One.
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- 1. "O Heavenly King
-
-
O gracious Holy Spirit
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Who proceeds from the Father,
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Come from Your dwelling-place in heaven
- And
fill our wretched earth
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With Your Holy Presence,
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For without You we have no hope
- Of
transfiguring the darkness
- Of
our souls and our lives.
- We
make the vanities of this fleeting world
- Our
king!
- Teach
us to be the servants
- Of
God's Kingdom,
- Rather
that the slaves
- Of
the kingdom of greed, lust, violence,
- Of
momentary, but empty-pleasures ---
- The
earth-bound kingdom
- Of
death and darkness.
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Do transform our darkness
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By the beautiful light
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Of Your heavenly Kingdom!
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2. "The Comforter
- Fortify
us with Your Power
- And
help us to see
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How puny and insignificant
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Is what we think is strength.
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In our blindness we imagine
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That we can find power
- In
our shadowy existence,
- And
attribute power to those
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Who are most bereft of true strength.
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Do empower us with the strength
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Of Your Holiness and Wisdom!
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When You are the source of our strength,
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We are empowered to move mountains ---
- The
mountains of evil
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And darkness and corruption.
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When You are the source of our strength,
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We are empowered to strip away
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The lies and deceit of the worldly kingdom
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And see Your Beauty and Your Creative Power
- In
the daily moment.
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When You are the source of our strength,
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We are empowered to experience
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The only true comfort ---
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That of standing in Your Presence,
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Filled with Your Presence,
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Empowered by that vision
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Of joy and beauty and love
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Which only Your Presence can give.
-
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- 3. "The Spirit of Truth
-
- O
the vanity of our world
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That seeks to brainwash us
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With its deceit and lies
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That reverse all true values and realities:
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Good and evil, life and death,
- Beautiful
and ugly, darkness and light ---
- All
are reversed by
- The
Master of deceit and darkness,
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Who even masquerades as
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The prince of light.
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But You, blessed divine Spirit
- Are
the Spirit of Truth ---
- The
source of Truth
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In Whom no lies nor darkness can exist,
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For darkness vanishes
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In the Presence of Light Itself.
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When Your Holy Light
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Illumines our hearts and our lives,
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We shall see ourselves as we really are ---
- See
how petty and puny we are,
-
Grasping after shadows and illusions.
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Do illumine our hearts
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With the Light of Your Truth,
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And drive out all darkness,
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So that we may have true wisdom
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To see things as they truly are ---
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To see You and Your Kingdom
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As true Reality,
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And disregard all the lies of what
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The master of deceit and darkness
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Wishes us to believe are true.
4. "Who art everywhere
- O
Holy Spirit
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We thank You
-
That You are everywhere
- And
that You love us so much
- That
You fill Your whole creation
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With Your Holy Presence.
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We fall down before You
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And bow our heads to the ground before You,
- That
in Your great love for us
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You do not abandon us
- Even
when we abandon You.
- Do
open our eyes,
-
As You fill our hearts with Your Truth,
- To
see that You really are everywhere ---
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To see Your Holy Presence
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Even in the midst of our greatest darkness,
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Even in the midst of our pain and agony,
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Loneliness and self-pity,
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When we feel abandoned by all
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But our hurt and despair,
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Orphaned and bereft of love.
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Even then,
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Especially then,
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Do come to us
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And restore our sight
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So that we may see that there is no place
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Where Your Light cannot reach,
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No place where You are not
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Present.
- 5. "And fillest all things
-
-
Such freedom, power and joy
- You
hold out to us in Your hand,
- Offering
Yourself
- To
fill us with Your own Spirit!
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But if You already fill all things,
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You have already filled us---
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If only we could see truly,
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If only we could see the Truth.
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If Your Presence truly is everywhere
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And fills all things,
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There is nowhere we can go
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To escape You,
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Or escape Your Presence.
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We can only lie to ourselves
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And pretend that You are not ---
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That you see not,
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That You know not.
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Yet what misery we bring upon ourselves
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When we choose to believe
- The
great deceiver---
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The spirit of darkness,
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Instead of Your Holy Spirit of Truth.
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Why do we prefer to love our lies
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Rather than to open our eyes
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And rejoice in Your Presence
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That fills all the universe,
- And
which is the source
- Of
all creative outpouring,
-
Of all inspiration?
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Do fill our hearts and minds
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Until they overflow
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With Your love
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And joy
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And beauty!
-
- 6. "Treasury of blessings
-
-
Such delusions we pursue
- With
such energy and ambition!
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Chasing phantoms in our blindness
- We
barely even comprehend what blessedness is,
-
And think that clothes, houses, cars,
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Prestige and power, fame and "fun"
- Are
blessings worth spending our lives pursuing.
-
But the Heavenly Spirit
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Is the treasure-house of true blessings---
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The blessings that do not have to be traded in
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For the latest fashion,
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The newest model,
- Or
thrown on the junk heap.
-
The Spirit's blessings are not ephemeral
- Such
as fame and fortune,
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But a treasure-chest of joys unsurpassed:
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Of profound depths of peace,
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Of being filled with love,
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Of being empowered to serve God's creation
- As
His instrument of peace and love;
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Of having eyes to see
- The Divine Presence
- And Activity dancing everywhere;
- Of being consumed with joy,
- The joy of each present moment---
- The joy of Dancing in the Presence!
- But we are the ones who have buried
- This great golden treasure
- Whereby we may become rich.
- So we waste our lives
- Searching everywhere
- For great golden treasure,
- When it is buried in our own hearts,
- If we would but recognize
- Its Presence.
- 7. "And Giver of Life
-
-
O heavenly Spirit ---
-
Spirit of Life,
-
Giver of Life,
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You Who wish to fill us with life,
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Rather than see us slink along
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The shark-infested shadows,
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The alligator-infested alleys
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Of darkness and death that we inhabit.
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We long for life from our deepest being ---
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Our heart of hearts ---
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But are so confused,
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Mistaking our shadows for realities.
-
We have not the slightest conception of life
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And constantly kill true life ---
-
In the name of life.
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Our shadowy existence
-
Is empty and meaningless
-
Unless You fill our empty, cold darkness
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With Your life.
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When You fill us, we are truly alive!
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But we close up our hearts,
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Stop up our ears, cover up our eyes:
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We know only death.
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You offer us Your Life
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And we turn our backs
-
And choose death.
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True Life is to know You;
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True Life is to be filled with You;
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Eternal Life is to know You
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And dwell every moment in Your Presence!
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True and eternal Life
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Is to forever Dance in Your Presence
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Without ceasing!
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- 8. "Come and abide in us
-
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Herein is the secret of all life,
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The secret of all our heart's desire,
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Of all our deepest longings ---
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Fulfilled when You live in us,
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When You take up Your throne in our hearts.
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How can You Who fill the heavens
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And fill all Your magnificent creation,
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Who is so awesome in all Your fearsome power
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Dwell in us, so puny and insignificant?
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Is this not the greatest mystery of all creation,
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That You Who spread out the heavens like a tent,
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Pitch Your tent in our hearts ---
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The secret innermost center of our being?
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Is this not the greatest of all paradoxes,
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So incomprehensible?
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We search everywhere,
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In every corner of the earth and outer space,
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When the answer to all our strivings
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Is already within the inner space.
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Divine Spirit, please do come,
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And keep on knocking on the door of our hearts
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Till we can no longer resist You!
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Yea, don't just knock gently,
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But hammer away noisily,
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Until we finally hear You
-
And open ourselves up to You.
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Yet You come not in the thunder and earthquake,
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Not in the noise of the spectacle;
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You come upon us quietly, smoothly,
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Like a gentle summer breeze ---
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So in the tumult of our noisy lives
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We never notice that all we desperately search for
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Is already at hand.
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Heavenly King, please do come
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And make Your home in us,
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For without You we are lost!
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- 9. "And cleanse us from every impurity
-
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Is this not the agony of our lives ---
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That the pollution of our empty, squalid,
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Self-centered existence,
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Devoid of joy or bliss,
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Rushes in on us like a tidal wave
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To sweep us away
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In the deluge of despondency?
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By ourselves we are powerless
-
To subdue the stifling storm within us,
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Trapped in the tumultuous torrent
-
Of our passions:
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Only You can cleanse us from our pollution.
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We turn to You;
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We rely on You
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To make our hearts pure
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So that we may truly see You.
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O how our hearts long for You, O Lord!
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But how can we see You
-
When our hollow hearts are so filled
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With abominations and impurities
-
Instead of being filled
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By Your Holy Presence,
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By Your Holy Spirit
-
In Whose Presence
-
All impurity vanishes?
-
Do come, O heavenly King,
-
And take a live coal from Your heavenly altar
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And purify our mouths, our hearts, our souls
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From all the impurities that blind us,
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That prevent us from seeing You,
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That prevent us from being filled with you,
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That prevent us from
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Dancing in Your Presence!
-
- 10. And save our souls, O Good One."
-
-
Out of the agony and turmoil
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Of our vacuous, monotonous lives,
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Slip-sliding in and out of the pit
-
Of darksome despair and despondency
-
Of life lived without You,
-
We cry out from the depths of our hearts ---
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"Help us, Lord, lest we drown!" ---
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Drown in our own self-centeredness,
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In our own self-pity, ignorance and blindness.
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Save us from our self-deception
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That we don't need to be saved.
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Again and again, every moment of every day,
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Teach us to see that we are
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Eaten away by the leprosy of our arrogance,
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Paralyzed by our pride,
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Blinded by our lack of love and trust in You.
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Teach us to cry out constantly till we are healed:
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"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,
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Have mercy on me a sinner."
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Do daily recreate
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Your good and holy Image in us,
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For only You are Good,
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Only You are Holy.
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Do ever mold us to conform to Your Image;
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Fill us with Your love and joy, peace and beauty;
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Fill us with Your heavenly zeal
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And longing to stand in Your glorious Presence!
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Do come, O heavenly King, and save our souls,
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So that we may be filled to overflowing
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By Your awesome Presence,
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So that our hearts may be set on fire
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With the joy and blessedness of
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Eternally
-
Dancing in the Presence!
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If you liked this poetic prayer/meditation, you might be interested in
the FIREBIRD book from which it was
taken, DANCING IN THE PRESENCE.
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ST. INNOCENT/
