Prayer, Come from Away

I wrote the following as part of a collaboration in the All Things Broadway blog in December 2018. As it is no longer online, I don't have the other contributions on that post, but it was about Broadway songs that were particularly meaningful to us at Christmas. I selected "Prayer" from Come from Away.

Picture (and rock painting) by Steven Sauke, September 2022
I painted this rock and left it at the World Trade Center for someone to find.
I trust it found a good home.

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Since the first time I listened to the cast recording of Come from Away, it resonated deeply with me. It brought back memories for me of learning of the tragedy and the aftermath. The music alone left me in tears. I grew up internationally, and this was truly an international tragedy. I found the song “Prayer” especially moving and relatable. Having lived in three countries, and having visited several others, the sense of unity in this song is particularly powerful for me. It beautifully weaves the prayer of St. Francis with Jewish, Sanskrit and Arabic prayers, all expressing a desire for peace and praise to God. This is the spirit of Christmas. In the Bible, the angels proclaimed “peace on earth” to the shepherds. St. Francis (and Kevin T. in the musical) prayed that God would “make me a channel of Your peace.” The rabbi and Eddie pray that God, who makes peace on high, make peace on us and all of Israel. Amen. The Sanskrit section of the song prays that they be led from falsehood to truth, from darkness to light, from death to immortality, and above all, peace, peace, peace. In Arabic, the character Ali praises Allah for his greatness and glory.

In his book Channel of Peace, and when I was interviewing him for my blog post in August, Kevin Tuerff mentioned that St. Francis’ prayer was in his head while stranded in Gander, but he did not recall mentioning that when Sankoff and Hein interviewed him in preparation for writing the musical. It seemed providential that they included it, and coming from Kevin T., no less. This song and Kevin Tuerff’s book have got me thinking more about how I can be used as a channel of peace. As a Christian, and as a human, I want to be someone who spreads peace. For too long, both Christianity and Islam have given good reasons for their violent stereotypes, exacerbated by the Crusades, terrorism, countless wars, and so much more. But both religions have peace at their hearts. The extremists on both sides have given their respective religions a bad name. We need to end the conflicts and work together to become a channel of “PEACE ON EARTH, GOODWILL TO MEN!”

PS. Did I mention I saw Come from Away three times when it came through Seattle in October? It is that good! In fact, it’s so good that even Grumpy Olde Guy [my friend Michael Kape, a retired Broadway critic] liked it when he saw it a few weeks later in LA! A ticket would make a great Christmas present for anyone in your life if you get the chance.

Kevin Tuerff and me, October 2018