These remarks were offered during Compline prayer at the Transfiguration House on Tuesday October 27, the day after the Feast Day of St. Alfred the Great (October 26). You can watch the Compline prayer service in its entirety here.
Reading for the Feast Day of St. Alfred the Great, King of the West Saxons
“A sensible king is the stability of any people” Wisdom 6:24
Tonight we observe the feast day of Alfred the Great. Often hailed as the first king of England, Alfred the Great halted the raids of Vikings at the Battle of Edington in 878, securing England for Christianity. As ruler, Alfred fortified the towns (called burghs), designed layouts of roads (many of which still exist in cities of England today), and won the hearts of the English people through his just and compassionate administration. He brought about a time of healing and unity after a season of chaos and death. Alfred laid down a strong foundation of Christian education for England by translating classic texts from Latin into English. According to a quote attributed to King Alfred, it is a “very foolish” and “very wretched” person “who will not increase in understanding while in this world, and ever wish and long to reach that endless life where all shall be made clear.”
Alfred translated (and oversaw the translations of) some of my favorite spiritual classics: Pope Gregory the Great’s Book of Pastoral Care, The Venerable Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy, and the Book of Psalms. With these texts made more accessible to the English people, Alfred watered the growing roots of Christian England with a serious concern for pastoral care and empathy (through Gregory), history and justice (through Bede), study and philosophy and healthy dialogue (through Boethius) and, most importantly prayer (Psalms); and I would also add a concern for the poor, since Bede’s Ecclesiastical History is full of stories of saints serving the needy, saints whom we are inspired to emulate. These values and concerns have continued to inform and form Christian England and all of her spiritual heirs, including the Episcopal Church of the United States.
Next week, we will vote (if we have not already voted) for our next president, the leader of this land, which has a heritage with roots that stretch all the way back to England and to King Alfred the Great. Although there is a lot of disagreement, everyone seems to agree that this election is monumental in its importance and might be the most important election of our lives. And I think we can all agree that this has been a time of chaos and death, as we now approach 230,000 deaths from COVID-19 in our nation. We need healing and we need to pray.
My job is not to tell you who to vote for. My job is to remind us all of our baptismal covenant, our vows as baptized Christians to strive for justice and peace among all people and to respect the dignity of every human being. My hope and my prayer is that our votes are informed by these vows and by the biblical principles of social justice and compassion and truth.
The reading from the Hebrew Scriptures assigned for the Feast Day of King Alfred is from Chapter 6 of the Wisdom of Solomon. May the words from the Wisdom of Solomon inform our votes and our prayers for this nation and for the election next Tuesday. I will read from this Bible which I received almost seven years ago at my ordination to the priesthood when I made vows “to love and serve the people among whom I work, caring alike for young and old, strong and weak, rich and poor” (and our Presiding Bishop would likely add Democrat and Republican).
O God, who called your servant Alfred to an earthly throne that he might advance your heavenly kingdom, and gave him zeal for your Church and love for your people: Grant that we, inspired by his example and prayers, may remain steadfast in the work you have given us to do for the building up of your reign of love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Almighty God, whose will for us is harmony and justice, give us the gift of fair and peaceful elections. Keep our poll workers safe, alert, and attentive; Bring serenity to every polling place and voting line; Grant our clerks and government officials clarity and accuracy in counting ballots; Give us patience as races and results are determined; And help every voter realize the gift of democracy, the privilege of voting, and our responsibility in determining our destiny, that we may truly be one nation under God with liberty and justice for all. Amen.
DANIEL DeFOREST LONDON 