Patrick’s prayer is a powerful reminder that there is an intimate, indwelling presence of Christ in all of us. Once we are able to recognize this and open our hearts to Christ, his light and love begin to grow within us. And his Spirit moves us and empowers us to be more like him; loving as He loves, forgiving as He forgives, and serving as He serves.
In a Christian Century article, E. Carrington Heath talks about a plaque situated just below the pulpit in a seminary chapel, which is only visible to the preacher. Inscribed upon it are the words, “We would see Jesus.”
It was placed there as a reminder to those who stand in that sacred space that their sole duty is to unveil Christ to those in attendance. Again, this might seem apparent, but in a world where preachers sometimes veer off course into discussions about banning books, drag queens, or preferred pronoun usage, this reminder is crucial. Now, I’ve had my own moments of digression, often to advocate against said bans. Even I need one of these reminders on my personal pulpit, to help me to remember the task at hand. Which is to help everyone see Jesus for who he truly is. This is where saints come in. They serve as celestial windows, offering us glimpses of how to live our life in Christlikeness. One such saint is Patrick who reminds us that the world doesn’t need more divisive tweets and facebook posts. The world simply needs more Jesus. And his church needs more saints. Ordinary folks like you and I, who will bravely risk it all to show Christ through our very existence. This is what Jesus asks of us: Matthew 16:24-26 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? Matthew 16:24-26
In this quick passage, Jesus talks to his disciples about the essence of losing oneself to find one’s true identity in Christ.
“He shares with them a promise of a future,” writes Heath, “but he also asks of them a commitment that will require them to be ready to follow him to fearful places.” Roughly four hundred years later, Patrick found himself ready and took off to a place that was rightfully a frightening place. While there he penned a prayer that beautifully encapsulates the essence of what I think this passage means. First spoken centuries ago, may these words speak to your heart and soul.
What I love about this prayer is it recognizes and allows Christ to be fully present in every facet of our lives. I think this is what it means to live in Christlikeness - to let him permeate every fiber of our being; shaping our thoughts, words, and actions in his image. We can’t do that on our own. Which might be why Jesus says we have to deny ourselves if we are going to follow him. Let's take a walk through this prayer to see how it might speak to us and our calling to be imitators of Christ. First, Patrick calls upon Christ by praying, “Christ be with me.” How many times have you uttered that sentence or some form of it? I’ve say it countless times when I am frightened, lost, scared, or feeling separated from God. As we learned last week, it’s in the praying and asking, that God responds. When we face adversity, we can call upon Christ to be with us, to lead us through the darkest valleys and into the light of His love. From being kidnapped and taken to Ireland to befriending the locals and escaping captivity, to having a call from God and returning to Ireland (as a fugitive at large), Patrick moved forward knowing he wasn’t facing this difficult mission alone. He prayed “Christ before me, Christ behind me.” No matter where he was Christ was with him, leading the way, offering comfort, strength, and guidance. And not only that, he knew and trusted that Christ had his back. We sometimes forget that he walks behind us, watching our step in case we stumble and fall. As we live into our Christlikeness we don’t need to worry about messing up. We just have to focus on moving forward. In recognizing Christ is all around us, we can pick up our cross and truly follow him; walking as he walked; being his His hands and feet in this world, so everyone has an opportunity to meet the “Christ in me,” which is the next line in this prayer. Having been made in the image of the Divine, means the core of our being is divine. And, according to Richard Rohr, that divine nature, is Christ. Quoting Paul, Rohr declares, “the Spirit of Christ is implanted within us by our Creator at the first moment of our creation” (see Romans 5:5, 8:11, 14–16). Patrick’s prayer is a powerful reminder that there is an intimate, indwelling presence of Christ in all of us. Once we are able to recognize this and open our hearts to Christ, his light and love begin to grow within us. And his Spirit moves us and empowers us to be more like him; loving as He loves, forgiving as He forgives, and serving as He serves. This is hard to do on our own. We must deny ourself, forgo our ego and get out of the way. Then pick up whatever our cross might be and follow Christ who leads the way back to God's heart. Patrick goes on to pray, “Christ beneath me,” to keep him steady. “Christ above me,” to watch over him. “Christ to my right” and “Christ to my left” to lean on in difficult times. We need to know that Christ is all encompassing - within us and all around us. He is just as much a part of what we stand on and live under, as he is in us, and those we live next to and step over. It’s in this recognition and knowing that we can fearlessly and faithfully extend grace and compassion to all. Remember the task at hand: that everywhere we go and everything we do, we would see Jesus. From every mundane tasks to the significant events in your life, Christ is there blessing you and infusing you with meaning and purpose. "Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down. Christ when I arise." This is a recognition that every moment, big and small, is an opportunity to bear witness to God’s love so that “Christ is in the heart of everyone who thinks of me. Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me. Christ in the eye that sees me, Christ in the ear that hears me.” If we are going to pick up our cross and follow in the footsteps of Jesus, then we too must make every moment holy, and every human encounter sacred. Faith is not a passive endeavor. It is an intentional action we take to participate in the kingdom of heaven. By this faithful action Christ to move in and out of us. In the space between the cross and sainthood, this is how Christ comes alive in the world. And why it is imperative that we deny ourselves so that Christ might live. To quote St. Teressa of Calcutta, “How sad it is when someone comes to you looking for Jesus and all they see is you.” And so it is my prayer for us and our church, that in all we do, may others see Christ reflected in our words and actions. May our lives be a testament to his love and grace, shining brightly for all to see. Through countless trials and tribulations, Patrick remained steadfast in his faith. His life was a testament to the power of Christ to transform even the hardest of hearts.And his prayer opened the door for the world to find the divine in the space between heaven and earth. While all of these are compelling reasons to make Patrick the patron saint of Anamesa, may we draw inspiration from the one who challenged this infamous saint, and all of us, to deny ourselves, pick our our cross and follow him. For it is in Christ, and with Christ, and through Christ the world will come to know the glory of God’s salvation. Work Cited Heath, E. Carrington. In The Lectionary, March 17 Lent 5B. March 11, 2024 (accessed on March 15, 2024) christiancentury.org. Rohr, Richard. An Indwelling Presence. June 1, 2023 (accessed on March 15, 2024) cac.org.
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