Collect for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity

GRANT, O Lord, we beseech thee, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance, that thy Church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

This seems an appropriate prayer for the holiday season. The Epistle which follows it in the Prayer Book (I. St Peter 3.8ff) sets out the human qualities which, whether or not they are recognised as gifts of the Spirit, would make for political peace as well as for harmony, growth and mutual assistance within the communities of faith (‘…let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it’). I take it that ‘ensue’ here means ‘follow up’. We should build on the foundations we have laid (or uncovered) and the advances we have made, without growing lazy or inattentive or succumbing to distraction and contrary motives. It is often said that holidays should include time for reflection. Not suspending our thought, but thinking better through not being under pressure - as the Church would do in a more peaceful world (which could only be a world in which there was more justice).

Robert Cockcroft

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