Bless the Lord, Oh My Soul

By Melanie Rigney

July 18, 2007

Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time

“Bless the Lord, my soul, all my being, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, my soul; do not forget all the gifts of God, Who pardons all your sins, heals all your ills, Delivers your life from the pit, surrounds you with love and compassion…” (Psalms 103:1-4)

“At that time Jesus exclaimed: ‘I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and learned you have revealed them to the childlike.’” (Matthew 11:25)

Piety

Lord, I praise you and all you are, that which I understand about you and that which I do not. May my soul bless you all the day. Amen.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/071807.shtml

Some people measure whether they’re in sync with others by whether they remember John Kennedy’s assassination on November 22, 1963. For others, it’s where you were when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986.

For me, a good indication of whether people are going to “get” me is whether they enjoyed Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell, both popular when I was in high school. I went to every production of both that I could, bought the records, the cassettes, the VHS tapes, and now the CDs and DVDs. I understand that some versions of both don’t include the resurrection, which is a pretty big omission, but every one I saw at least implied Christ arose from the dead. And, the music in both was, for the most part, incredible. (Forget the ’70s costumes and some of the acting.)

I share this because the highlight of the 1973 movie version of Godspell for me is when Lynne Thigpen (who you may remember from TV’s The District and recurring roles on Law & Order, LA Law and thirtysomething) belts out “Oh Bless the Lord, My Soul,” based on Psalm 103, one of today’s readings.

And what a psalm it is! It’s big, ebullient, joyful. No small “thank you for answering my prayer about my brother’s surgery” or “I really appreciate that you helped me get through that job interview.” No, here David’s praise is sweeping. He blesses the Lord with “all my being” for pardoning all iniquities, healing all ills, and redeeming lives from destruction. This God is huge, and David honors him with huge praise.

The small moments of our lives here on earth also are worth thanks. But we must not forget to thank God for the big stuff, for “being” as we go about our daily lives. Bless the Lord, oh my soul!

Action

At dinner tonight, instead of your usual spoken prayer, sing a verse of “Oh Bless the Lord My Soul (one place to find the lyrics is www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/godspell/blessthelord.htm) or a favorite song of praise for your meal’s blessing.