Prayer for Autumn

A prayer for Autumn

John Keats’ poem to autumn begins with the lines.  

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
  Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
  With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
  And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;

We give thanks for the ways that the warmth of the sun and the fertility of the earth conspire to produce an abundance of fruit in Autumn. This great burst of productivity comes before we begin the shift towards winter.

We pray for people who are in the autumn of their lives that they may be able to share the fruits of their experience and their wisdom with the next generation. May their last season on earth be filled with blessings.

We remember those who live in parts of our earth where droughts, floods and fires have diminished the capacity of the earth to be fruitful.

On this the feast of St. Joseph the worker we pray that God will bless the work of our hands and all that our earth provides so that we can feed the hungry and needy and care for the earth from which life comes.

Amen  

Fr Pat O'Shea lives and works in Aotearoa/New Zealand