Iphigene here.
I mentioned before that I went out on a retreat to enjoy some quiet and solitude. In that retreat, I got the opportunity to reflect on the Our Father. In reflecting on it, I found myself breaking down each familiar phrase and writing my own interpretation and understanding.
A week or so after my retreat, I found myself looking at my interpretation, from there I worked on a poem. I hope you enjoy my own Our Father. For the rest of today’s Poetry Friday head on to The Miss Rumphius Effect
Our Father
by Iphigene
Mine and not mine
Alone.
Far and distant,
Ever known.
In your eyes,
I am daughter—
Born strong
And prone to falter
For your love,
I accept, I obey
To experience pain
Temporal, today.
For in you, joy
Is daily present
In your providence
I shall ascent
To forgive their folly
As you have mine
Out of rashness
I hurt you—Divine
Love, arms wide
Enduring, unceasing
I reciprocate
Imperfect, pleading
Engulf me with light
That I may stand
In my battle field
Within your hand
Never to run,
Ready to love
Every Human
In your blood.
I hope you all have a wonderful Friday!
Gathering Books 
Lovely, Iphigene. I like that you took each phrase so thoughtfully. It’s so easy to recite the words like a multiplication table and miss the sustenance the words carry. I recently taught a yoga workshop on praying this prayer with our bodies. Thanks for sharing your poem.
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That was the beauty of the exercise…to see the prayer as my own personal prayer rather than a learned prayer. I cant imagine the yoga and the our father, but it sounds wonderful.thanks for dropping by.
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Some of my favorite lines: Born strong/And prone to falter, That I may stand/In my battle field/
Within your hand, and Ready to love/Every Human/In your blood. Love and battlefields — that seems to sum up a lot. Thanks, Iphigene, for this close rendering.
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Hi Tabatha
The lines you favored were my most personal reflections of the prayer. And the line ‘born strong’ is actually what my name ‘iphigene’ means. Im glad you enjoyed the poem.
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Wise woman are you for taking time to make a retreat; blessed readers are we for sharing in the fruit of your prayer time. Thank you for sharing–for trusting us–with your very personal and beautiful prayer response. Yours is one poem today that demands thoughtful, unhurried, prayerful reading. “Mine and not mine alone.” I love the paradox. As an only child, “Our Father” is a familial experience I have not had; With that human lack, I could spend a lifetime imagining what “Our Father” means. How much more can I relate to “Mine and not mine alone.” God bless you!!! Thank you for sharing and caring.
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Hi. I smile at the phrase ‘wise woman.’ I am not sure if I am truly wise, only that I wrote this poem as my own personal ownership of the prayer. I am glad you got something from it and enjoyed it. It wasn’t easy, it took a full day to see the meaning of each phrase in the prayer and to surrender to how I understood the prayer in my heart.
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Thank you so much for reaching back to me…I’ve reread your prayer-reflection, and continue to be “stopped”–in a powerful, fulfilling way by your first five words. Thank you! Blessed Thanksgiving!
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I love “born strong and prone to falter.” There’s so much truth in those words.
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Hi Laura,
Yes, strength doesn’t not necessarily mean we are immune to falter. Truth be told, those lines are one of the few lines that are completely personal. My name, Iphigene in Greek is a combination of two words “iphios” and “gene” which roughly translates to “born strong” or “strong born.”That being said, this was the few lines in the poem that was self-referent.
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Wow! What an beautiful picture of the Father. I think my favorite stanza is “Love, arms wide…” I’m printing this out to put in the front of my Bible and read as a daily devotional.
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Hi Carol,
I am completely flattered. I am glad this poem (or should i say personal version of the Our Father) spoke to you. When this came to completion, I finally felt what that generic Catholic prayer meant to me. It was no longer some distant thing, but a personal prayer wherein I do feel his Love, arms wide. 🙂
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