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Prayers for a Privileged People
In Prayers for a Privileged People, this much-published author sculpts—as carefully as if with chisel—prayers on behalf of those who are people of privilege and entitlement—the haves—at an urgent moment in our society. The privileged face, on the one hand, the seduction of denial or, on the other, the temptation of despair. These prayers of wisdom and prophetic power remind us that when things go wrong , when we are afraid , and when we feel prodded by those who lack voice, there is a conversation we can have—a conversation situated amid the promises and commands of God.
202 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2008
62 people are currently reading
626 people want to read
About the author
Walter Brueggemann
316 books571 followersWalter Brueggemann was an American Christian scholar and theologian who is widely considered an influential Old Testament scholar. His work often focused on the Hebrew prophetic tradition and the sociopolitical imagination of the Church. He argued that the Church must provide a counter-narrative to the dominant forces of consumerism, militarism, and nationalism.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
April 10, 2014
But we confess…
we love you imperfectly;
we love you with a divided heart,
with a thousand other loves
that are more compelling (11)
These are some of my favorite words in Walter Brueggemann’s book of incisive prayers, perhaps because they are the words that cut into my own privilege. As one who is nearly constantly engaged in thought and activity, often my sense of the divine does not seem as compelling as the interests, hobbies, work, media, and relationships that consume my attention on a daily basis.
This book is for everyone but especially for those of us who tend to take life into our own hands. We know who we are. We make our own choices about where to go and when. We have expendable income and savings if we need them. The simplicity we value is voluntary rather than necessary. We are so used to being in charge of our own agency that we don’t even notice it. We are privileged.
In terms of identity in today’s United States it may look white and/or middle class and/or heterosexual and/or male and/or educated and so on. One prayer entitled “Ourselves at the Center” puts it this way: We are your people, mostly privileged competent entitled. Your people who make futures for ourselves, seize opportunities, get the job done and move on. In our self-confidence, we expect little beyond our productivity; we wait little for that which lies beyond us, and then settle with ourselves at the center” (43).
Much of my personal wrestling with the God – concept has pushed against Brueggemann’s timely images of sovereign, king, and Lord, but in this context of privilege those are precisely the images we need to engage: images that are unsettling and uncomfortable, that remind us our control is fragile and that our lives don’t depend on ourselves alone.
This book is arranged in six sections that follow, as Brueggemann notes in the preface, a natural rhythm of prayer from self-awareness to awareness of others to a “yielding to the goodness of God” (xiii). The prayer topics are abstract and wide-ranging, and they are specific to holidays like Thanksgiving and Labor Day or events like the death of coal miners or income tax day.
Some are paired with scripture and others are paired with salient theological themes: peace, war and violence; theodicy; creation; bondage.
One great temptation in praying these prayers is to make them about someone else – some other privileged person who needs to be called to account. Another temptation is to engage these conceptions of the divine through personal, rational negotiations of power. Those who do either miss the point, which is (in all complexity and simplicity) that prayer is a subversive spiritual practice that expands the way we see ourselves, our world, and our God.
we love you imperfectly;
we love you with a divided heart,
with a thousand other loves
that are more compelling (11)
These are some of my favorite words in Walter Brueggemann’s book of incisive prayers, perhaps because they are the words that cut into my own privilege. As one who is nearly constantly engaged in thought and activity, often my sense of the divine does not seem as compelling as the interests, hobbies, work, media, and relationships that consume my attention on a daily basis.
This book is for everyone but especially for those of us who tend to take life into our own hands. We know who we are. We make our own choices about where to go and when. We have expendable income and savings if we need them. The simplicity we value is voluntary rather than necessary. We are so used to being in charge of our own agency that we don’t even notice it. We are privileged.
In terms of identity in today’s United States it may look white and/or middle class and/or heterosexual and/or male and/or educated and so on. One prayer entitled “Ourselves at the Center” puts it this way: We are your people, mostly privileged competent entitled. Your people who make futures for ourselves, seize opportunities, get the job done and move on. In our self-confidence, we expect little beyond our productivity; we wait little for that which lies beyond us, and then settle with ourselves at the center” (43).
Much of my personal wrestling with the God – concept has pushed against Brueggemann’s timely images of sovereign, king, and Lord, but in this context of privilege those are precisely the images we need to engage: images that are unsettling and uncomfortable, that remind us our control is fragile and that our lives don’t depend on ourselves alone.
This book is arranged in six sections that follow, as Brueggemann notes in the preface, a natural rhythm of prayer from self-awareness to awareness of others to a “yielding to the goodness of God” (xiii). The prayer topics are abstract and wide-ranging, and they are specific to holidays like Thanksgiving and Labor Day or events like the death of coal miners or income tax day.
Some are paired with scripture and others are paired with salient theological themes: peace, war and violence; theodicy; creation; bondage.
One great temptation in praying these prayers is to make them about someone else – some other privileged person who needs to be called to account. Another temptation is to engage these conceptions of the divine through personal, rational negotiations of power. Those who do either miss the point, which is (in all complexity and simplicity) that prayer is a subversive spiritual practice that expands the way we see ourselves, our world, and our God.
March 4, 2017
I love the way this man prays. This book is full of prayers for special occasions, yearly calendar events, and whatever life may throw at you. It helped lead me through a few tumultuous seasons this last year and I'm so thankful for the peace that God has spoken to me through Brueggemann's prayers. I highly recommend taking your time and meditating on these prayers, letting them sink in as you read.
June 15, 2016
A wonderful tool for my devotions. Does a tremendous job in using our cultural experience to be a bridge to scripture. I'm excited to add more Brueggemann to my library.
September 7, 2023
Always need a little Brueggemann in my life.
February 2, 2021
This book is a series of prayers--some tied to significant days or holidays, some tied to scripture, some tied to unique and impactful events that have entered our nation's collective memory. I was struck so often by the power of Brueggemann's words, the intricacy and simplicity of carefully tended phrases and images placed so intentionally on the page. I dog-eared many of the pages, but I imagine with each time I turn to it, different prayers will speak to me in different ways. Several prayers truly made me pause, the impact of the words needing a requisite amount of time to process. This is the kind of book that should be in the hands of every Christian, a necessary corrective and needed perspective for westerners saddled with privilege.
March 8, 2019
As someone who makes more than $33,000 (USD) a year, that puts me in the top 1% globally. And as a well-educated and capable man, I find myself in an awkward place as I approach the Bible and read about the Jesus who came to free the oppressed, to be a stumbling block to the wise, and to make the first become last. This is a prayer book for people like me who find themselves to be rich young rulers (whom Jesus loved) for whom it would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than to enter the kingdom of God.
November 10, 2020
A book of prayers that challenge in humility and remind that we often hold ourselves higher than we ought. I appreciate the expressed conflict in worship: we love God, but so often only half heartedly, or alongside our love for things of this world. We receive and even welcome distraction! This needs correction, and makes God’s grace bigger in my mind and heart.
Well written and fitting prayers for the heart as well as for specific events.
Well written and fitting prayers for the heart as well as for specific events.
January 23, 2023
2023 bk 25. Other reviewers have said what I feel about this book - Brueggemann prays in poetry seeking Christ in his and his reader's hearts. He pleads with audience to remember that Christ's concerns are for all, but our concerns need to be turned to those in pain, in turmoil, in poverty. These poems are not meant to be read as a novel, rather I tried to read one at an appropriate time in the year (he uses the liturgical calendar) and to savour the taste of each prayer for a day or so.
December 24, 2024
A few gems I copied down, but on the whole I didn't enjoy this as much as a previous Bruggemann prayer/poetry book I read. The prayers were true and valuable and provided helpful corrective/perspective, and yet somehow also felt a bit heavy-handed at times. Perhaps that's just because they were collected in one volume, whereas if they were interspersed with other types of prayers, it would feel different.
I liked it, but it won't get a permanent place on my shelf. 3.5 stars.
I liked it, but it won't get a permanent place on my shelf. 3.5 stars.
September 21, 2017
prayers for various seasons and occasions
reflection on position and power, presupposition and premise
some based on scripture, other liturgical season or event.
reflection on position and power, presupposition and premise
some based on scripture, other liturgical season or event.
September 19, 2018
I use this as a resource for church events. So many relevant topics and very thoughtfully and wisely written.
August 16, 2020
These are prayers for our time, and especially appropriate during an election season.
September 27, 2020
Thought-provoking, inspiring prayers.
October 11, 2022
beautiful
June 11, 2014
It hurts to look in the mirror, we are driven by selfishness, greed and violence. But there is hope, and not of the Pollyanna variety, Brueggemann expresses it well.
December 6, 2014
A book deeply needed in our churches today as we face the heartbreak of the last few weeks
November 10, 2015
Wanna pray real stuff that shatters your inner world? Brueggemann does it with this book of prayers. You read along and suddenly you know he is speaking to your soul.
December 4, 2015
This is a moving little book of prayers. They are so very relevant to my own comfortable, average American life.
August 6, 2011
Fantastic! Deeply moving and revealing for all of us...
March 5, 2013
Wonderful book of collected prayers from Walter.Bruggemann.
September 2, 2017
I enjoy very much the way the word "Easter" is liberally used as both an adjective and a verb.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews