Proper 7B

About the Contributor

Chaplain Resident at

St. Mary’s Medical Center

Chaplain Resident at

St. Mary’s Medical Center

Prop 7B

Annie Kee

O Lord, make us have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving ­kindness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

This collect is a perfect prayer for Ordinary Time, a season in which we reflect on and celebrate our call to follow Jesus and live as the people of God. In this week’s collect, we address the God who is the one who never fails to help and direct God’s people—those who “have set upon the sure foundation of [God’s] loving kindness.” God, in God’s loving kindness, is always with us. We will never be abandoned on our journey. God is always guiding and directing us. It’s a fascinating collect to pray in light of this week’s gospel reading: Mark 4:35-41. God is the one in the boat with us, even in terrible storms. God is the one protecting the disciples, guiding them toward faith.

The collect petitions that God will make us to have never-ending love and respect for God’s Name. The God’s holy Name refers to God’s revelation and strength. When we ask for love and respect for God’s Name, we are asking for love and respect for God. This collect may remind us of the command to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.” That’s what we are praying: that God would empower us to be the people who love God with all that we are.

Not only are we asking to love God continually, but we are asking to revere God continually. In the traditional version of this collect, the language was “fear” instead of “reverence.”[1] We are asking for a profound sense of submission and admiration toward God. We should not forget the overwhelming greatness and holiness of the God with whom we are in relationship. God has created the heavens and the earth. God is majestic and powerful. Love and respect for God are connected—the more eagerly we seek to love God, the more we will fear God with a devoted respect and awe. The more we respect and are in wonder of God, the more we will love God with all that we are.

[1] Pfatteicher, Philip H. Journey into the Heart of God: Living the Liturgical Year. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013.

Annie Kee

Chaplain at

St. Mary’s Medical Center