Table Grace

Here are some of the prayers before meals used by the summer camp communities I knew through my days as a youth and my days as a camp-director-priest. You might know the Johnny Appleseed song.

Ohhhhh,
the Lord is good to me,
and so I thank the Lord,
for giving me the things I need:
the sun and the rain and the apple seed;
the Lord is good to me. Amen. (Dig in!)

This is the familiar doxology, but can you sing it to the tune of Hernando’s Hideaway?

Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Praise him, him all creatures here below.
Praise him above, ye heavenly host.
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

It can also be sung to the Jamaican sounding “Kingston Town”. I would have to show you, but I promise, it really can. The last line sounded more like “Praise de Fadah, de Son, and de Holy Ghost.”  At camp, we were free and fun like that.

Oh, but that’s not all. If you remember the soundtrack to the movie “Superman,” we put that grand theme to this prayer:

Thank you, God, for giving us food. Thank you, God, for giving us, friends.
For the food we eat, for the friends we meet, Thank you, God!
Now, let’s eat.

Oh, and I wish I could show you the choreography that goes with that one. I know other prayers, not from camp: ones from the liturgical tradition of the church. Here is a responsive one rooted to our Psalm for this coming Sunday

The eyes of all wait upon you, O Lord:
     and you give them their food in due season.
You open wide your hand,
     and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
     as in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Read through this portion of our Psalm for the liturgy on Sunday, those verses (14 and 15)  are sandwiched in with these other verses:

Psalm 145

16   The Lord upholds all those who fall:*
       he lifts up those who are bowed down.

18  The Lord is righteous in all his ways *
      and loving in all his works.

19  The Lord is near to those who call upon him, *
      to all who call upon him faithfully.

It makes us want to launch into praise:

O, the Provider! So faithful, so merciful:
lifting and straightening,
setting food before us
hands wide open.
Faithfully, let us call
upon the righteous and loving One
and so, sense the attentive presence
of our generous Giver of all good gifts. (D. Price, July 2021)