As you sip your Monday morning coffee and prepare for your week, I offer you the following prayer for reflection:
Սաղմոս ԻԷ. 9
Կեցո, Տէր, զժողովուրդս քո եւ օրհնեա զժառանգութիւնս քո։
Հովուեա եւ բարձրացո զսոսա յայսմհետէ մինչեւ յաւիտեան։
Psalm 28: 9
Excerpt from the Divine Liturgy
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
shepherd them and lift them up from henceforth until eternity.
This prayer is a beautiful blessing during the Divine Liturgy over the faithful family of Christ, just following Holy Communion, as Badarak is nearing a close. Just as we are all one body by having been baptized from the universal font of our Apostolic Church and anointed with the holy muron, we again become one body – God’s beloved inheritance – by partaking in Holy Communion. In the likeness of Christ at the Last Supper, the priest prays to our Heavenly Father that he may bless his faithful who have participated and partaken in the Body and Blood of Christ to become one body in union with Christ. Giving thanks to the Lord one more time, this prayer is asking for God’s eternal blessing on his inheritance.
Just as a shepherd cares for his weary and weak sheep, lifting them up and carrying them in their need, this prayer is meant to protect us, asking for the Heavenly Father to shepherd us, bless us and keep us on the path of righteousness as we face the constant trials and temptations of earthly life. May we all have the Lord’s constant and life-sustaining presence to shepherd and guide us, “from henceforth until eternity.”
Let us remain faithful, mindful and spiritually strong, as we stand together in the face of this pandemic and war.
Prayerfully yours,
Father Oshagan
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