Pray As You Can

A friend recently told me that although some members of her church have been participating in peaceful protests in support of racial justice, “I have not felt the call to protest as I have in the past and am feeling a little guilty about it.” However, she is promoting racial justice in another way by tutoring two young women from Ecuador and Cairo who are in the process of becoming U.S. citizens. Her situation makes me think of a statement by Abbot John Chapman that was quoted by Fr. Jerome Kodell, OSB, in a recent Being Benedictine online forum: “Pray as you can, not as you can’t.”

People with a heightened sense of compassion and responsibility often judge themselves for what they are not doing. We generally think of responsibility in positive terms, but as Fr. Jerome cautions, “There is a pitfall in responsibility if it is not enlightened by discernment.” The desire to respond to all the needs we encounter (and be praised for doing so) can lead to the trap of overrespon-sibility, which often results in wasted energy, anger, depression, and exhaustion.

Fr. Jerome notes that the discernment advocated by St. Benedict in his Rule fosters moderation and helps us avoid the dangers of overresponsibility. St. Benedict encourages us to listen to what we are called to do in our present circumstances, develop the humility to recognize our limitations, and acknowledge the validity of our elders’ experience so we can learn from their wisdom.

Pray as you can, not as you can’t. Today, perhaps that means recognizing that we don’t have to do everything because (a) God is God and we are not and (b) the Body of Christ has more than enough diverse, talented, and helping hands to respond to the needs of the world.