Monday 22 June. Song 84 ‘Mayenziwe’
Music traditional, arr. John Bell
YouTube recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGvqNsVfM6c  
Featured image: Logo of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa

This is one of those songs which, coming from a very different musical tradition and linguistic roots, I found almost impossible to sing just from the book. I had to find a recording to listen to and sing along to, in order to pick up the rhythm and the pronunciation of the words. The words are in Xhosa, a Bantu (South African) language, and the music is also from that part of the world.

The words translate as ‘Your will be done on earth, O Lord’ and are one phrase from the local version of the Lord’s Prayer.  As such, they are a reminder that this prayer is shared by all Christians, whatever language we use. In fact, just earlier this evening one of the members of our fortnightly prayer group taught us the French words of the Lord’s prayer (she is bilingual), as we were discussing what it means to pray together as the Church, as distinct from our individual prayers.

She also taught us a way that it is prayed in some French churches, with people holding hands along a row of chairs or in a circle, as a further reminder that this is a corporate prayer. ‘Our Father’, not ‘My Father’. That is important, because there is sometimes a tendency to individualise our faith. It seems to be more prevalent in Evangelical circles, especially those of a more conservative type, where ‘my salvation’ is what matters, rather than ‘my part in the redemption of all creation’.

Another aspect of prayer that we looked at this evening is the ‘collects’ of the Anglican church, ancient prayers that are set for a particular day or week, and follow a very rigid format, just like a sonnet or other poetic form. Between an appeal to God’s nature and a statement of faith is the core of the prayer – ‘the petition’. Here is the petition from this week’s collect:

‘Give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service, that we and all creation may be brought to the glorious liberty of the children of God.’

Again, the emphasis is on seeking grace for ‘us’ (the whole Church, not just the individual or local congregation) and on the aim of restoring the whole creation, not just saving individuals from their personal sins. Next time you pray this prayer, or the Lord’s Prayer, together in church, remember that you pray it along with Christians of many traditions and in many nations, including the Xhosa speakers of South Africa.