November is the month of Remembering
Week 4: ‘The only thing faster than the speed of thought is the speed of forgetfulness’ (Vera Nazarian).
Read: John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (Vera Nazarian)
If you google, ‘quotes about remembering and forgetting’, the internet gives a surprising number of references to Romeo and Juliet – to lovers celebrated for their youth! But becoming forgetful – losing our memory, is a familiar feature of getting older. How often do you say, for example, ‘What did I come into this room for?’
What is, sadly, becoming much more familiar is the more profound problems of mental decline caused by the various forms of dementia. Statistics say that half of us will be affected by dementia in our lifetime, as sufferer or carer. That means that many of the people reading these prayers will already understand dementia as part of their life. 1 in 11 people over 65 in the UK have dementia, more women than men. As people have lived longer, dementia become the leading cause of death in the UK.
So, this week’s prayers are for all those many millions of people whose lives are now shadowed by dementia. We pray for those who have dementia, and for those who are in the early stages, afraid of the future. We pray for those who live with someone with dementia, seeing the impact on their loved one and also on themselves – and all the different emotions that brings. We pray for families and friends trying to offer support and care to those for whom dementia has taken over their lives. We pray for all the professionals involved – for care staff and medical staff, for charity workers and medical researchers.
And in all this we think about our churches – our family and friends with dementia remain part of our church family. As the age profile of our congregations matures, so the numbers of our members with dementia can only increase. What can our church spaces offer to our members and our local area as we represent the presence of Christ the Healer in our world?
And so we pray:
Holy God
Today I take time to remember all those living with profound forgetting.
For those living with dementia as sufferer or supporter
(Take pause to hold before God all whom you know in this situation)
For those whose daily work is to help – in medicine, science, care and charity
(Take pause to hold before God all those working with dementia, naming any that you know)
For our churches as the community of the Healer, in our service of our church family and our wider society
(Take pause to think of your church family and pray for its life as a beloved community)
Amen.
For further reflection:
Methodist Women in Britain has worked with partners to develop ‘dementia friendly churches’ resources – you can find these on the Methodist Church and MWiB websites.
There are some excellent resources for praying more about dementia here:
Barbara Easton World Federation President Britain & Ireland Unit
