May God bless you with restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships so that you may seek truth boldly and live from the depth of your heart;

May God bless you with holy anger at inequity, oppression and exploitation, so that you may work tirelessly for justice, freedom and peace among all people;

May God bless you with tears to shed with those who suffer pain, disease, rejection, starvation of the body, starvation of the soul, or the loss of all they cherish, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their suffering into joy;

and,

May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can really make a difference in this world, so that you are able, with God’s grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.

Let it be so; Amen.

Adapted by Dee Wade from an old Franciscan benediction

All the news

By Sharron Singleton

Some look to angels

For news of the holy;

On my knees in the earth

Of my garden,

Hot sun rakes

My hair, licks

My neck, presses

Me down, stuns

Me with all the news

I can bear.

– Originally published in The Christian Century, Aug. 10, 2006
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