Cherokee Prayer Blessing

Last night, the contemporary band (it's time to name this band, any ideas?) watched a movie called Whale Rider as it will serve as the theme for our next service (third Sunday in July). It's a wonderful film about the Māori tribe in New Zealand and their struggle for leadership as they try to survive. The movie focuses on the chief and his granddaughter and the notions that each of them have about the future leadership of the tribe. I won't say anything more than that as I don't want to give any of the movie away.

Our choir director, Mary Piercey, is working on her doctoral thesis and has spent several years learning and transcribing indigenous music. We'll be featuring music and prayer from several different peoples from around the world during this service. As this is the only Sunday that we've done this, it may seem like we're lumping everything together for "tribal Sunday," and we admit that we are. However, while it is important to honor each people individually, the inclusion of prayer and art from several different tribes helps to widen our church's exposure to different groups and provides a look at different aspects of the body of Christ that we would not normally see. I'm hopeful that this is only the beginning to including these wonderful songs and prayers in our worship service. The Body is wonderfully diverse.

I'd like to share a prayer blessing that Mary forwarded to me this afternoon, courtesy of this website. Enjoy!

Cherokee Prayer Blessing

May the Warm Winds of Heaven
Blow softly upon your house.
May the Great Spirit
Bless all who enter there.
May your Mocassins
Make happy tracks
in many snows,
and may the Rainbow
Always touch your shoulder.
Give Us Hearts to Understand

Give us hearts to understand;
Never to take from creation's beauty more than we give;
never to destroy wantonly for the furtherance of greed;
Never to deny to give our hands for the building of earth's beauty;
never to take from her what we cannot use.
Give us hearts to understand
That to destroy earth's music is to create confusion;
that to wreck her appearance is to blind us to beauty;
That to callously pollute her fragrance is to make a house of stench;
that as we care for her she will care for us.
We have forgotten who we are.
We have sought only our own security.
We have exploited simply for our own ends.
We have distorted our knowledge.
We have abused our power.
Great Spirit, whose dry lands thirst,
Help us to find the way to refresh your lands.
Great Spirit, whose waters are choked with debris and pollution,
help us to find the way to cleanse your waters.

Great Spirit, whose beautiful earth grows ugly with misuse,
help us to find the way to restore beauty to your handiwork.
Great Spirit, whose creatures are being destroyed,
help us to find a way to replenish them.
Great Spirit, whose gifts to us are being lost in selfishness and corruption,
help us to find the way to restore our humanity.
Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the wind,
whose breath gives life to the world, hear me;
I need your strength and wisdom.
May I walk in Beauty.