Bread: A Sacramental Sonnet

Bread: A Sacramental Sonnet

by Gideon Burton

O God, Eternal Father, in the name

Of Jesus Christ, thy slain and risen Son--

That we who, heavy laden, full of blame

May through His spirit find our woes undone;

Recalling His weak body, frail as ours,

That long before Golgotha's final trial

Had passions known, disease, fatiguing hours,

The strains all human flesh must know awhile;

That we His name may take into our lives

As emptied Jesus did His father's breath;

That He, His words obeyed, may us revive

As His commands insure our souls from death–

        Bless, we pray, this sweet and saving bread,

        For we shall live who but for Him were dead.

This is an imitation/paraphrase of the prayer offered during the sacrament (eucharist) ordinance of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The original text can be found here.  Feel free to copy, imitate, remix, or redistribute this poem as long as you give proper acknowledgment of authorship. Photo: flickr - six steps