Tuesday in the Third Week of Lent
March 14, 2023
Today’s online Lenten reflection comes from a prayer that was traditionally said by women in the morning in communities on the far Western coast of Scotland. The original language of this prayer would have been Scottish Gaelic, and Alexander Carmichael, the great folklorist, recorded this prayer at the turn of the last century and then translated it into English. Esther de Waal calls this prayer the “Blessing of the kindling,” and she notes in the introduction of her book, The Celtic Vision: Prayers and Blessing from the Outer Hebrides that this prayer would have been recited by the women of the house, in the earliest morning hours, before anyone else had awoken, as they brought the embers of the household hearth fire back to life. Women in this part of the world would take kindling, or dry, flammable material (such as pine needles and dry sticks), and slowly feed the embers that had been carefully insulated in a thin layer of ash the night before. This would require the lightest movement of breath to gently stir the embers to increased vigor; slow, deliberate brushing movements, to delicately maneuver the embers into a position for greater air flow; and large doses of patient optimism. In this prayer, the petitioner notes that she is not alone in bringing her family’s fire back to life: she does so “in the presence of the holy angels of heaven,” and with “the Holy Son of God”, who serves a protecting role for her and her household. The image of kindling a fire of love for others within the human heart is an especially appropriate metaphor for the Lenten season, in which we strive to care for others and set aside resources for almsgiving to the poor.
Blessing of the kindling
I will kindle my fire this morning
In the presence of the holy angels of heaven,
In the presence of Ariel of the loveliest form,
In presence of Uriel of the myriad charms,
Without malice, without jealousy, without envy,
Without fear, without terror of any one under the sun,
But the Holy Son of God to shield me.
Without malice, without jealousy, without envy,
Without fear, without terror of any one under the sun,
But the Holy One of God to shield me.
God, kindle Thou in my heart within
A flame of love to my neighbor,
To my friend, to my foe, to my kindred all,
To the brave, to the knave, to the thrall,
O Son of the loveliest Mary,
From the lowliest thing that liveth,
To the Name that is highest of all.
O Son of the loveliest Mary,
From the lowliest thing that liveth,
To the King who is highest of all.
I will raise my hearth-fire this morning
In the encirclement of the Holy Son of God.
The encirclement of the saints of heaven,
Blessed Brigit and lovely Mary,
Be with my fire, walk my floor,
And dwell kindly with the household all.
The Son of Life bless my fire and be near me,
And dwell kindly with my household all.