Dec 31, 2023

Sarum Primer

We come at long last to December 31, the last day of the year. The transition to a new year brings with it reflections on the passage of time and uncomfortable reminders of our mortality. We live in a death-denying culture. We avoid talking about death and have even adopted euphemisms to keep from referencing it directly. It wasn’t always this way.

The Rule of St. Benedict developed in the sixth century directed monks in the Benedictine Order to “keep death daily before your eyes.” Benedict wasn’t being morbid. He was seeking to cultivate the virtue of humility in his monastic community. Contemplating death enabled monks to live with greater purpose and refrain from becoming consumed with superficial concerns. The Psalmist directs us to pray, “Teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90.12).

The following prayer is included in an ancient book of prayers called the Sarum Primer of 1514. Sarum is a Latin abbreviation for Salisbury, the city in England where the prayers originated. Lord, be with us at our end and at our departing:

God be in my head, and in my understanding.
God be in my eyes, and in my looking.
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking.
God be in my heart, and in my thinking.
God be at my end, and at my departing.

Rev. Dr. Peter James served 42 years as the senior of Vienna Presbyterian Church in Vienna, VA — 21 years in the 20th century and 21 years in the 21st century. He retired in 2021 and now serves as Pastor-in-Residence at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

Even as a pastor, prayer came slowly to Pete. Read Pete’s story.