Eternal Listener, give heed to Your people, You, who dwell amidst the angels, Shine forth into the heart of All nations! Enliven your people with compassion That peace and justice Might flourish. Restore us, O Holy One; Let your face shine upon us, Teach us to love.
~ Nan Merrill from "Psalm 80, Verse 1" in PSALMS FOR PRAYING
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It is hard to explain to a loving person who can only give, what the refusal to receive does to would-be givers. If our gifts come out of the substance of who we are, to refuse our gifts is a rejection of our very self. At the same time, the turning away of a gift destroys the reciprocity of love. In place of mutuality, it sets up a hierarchy of love that makes the one who always receives and whose gifts are refused feel empty, powerless, and incompetent to love well, and so unable in turn to receive from the beloved with a grateful heart.