Unless they structure their lives somehow, time goes ahead without them and leaves them to wonder where it went. The Christian church understood this and, starting in the 4th century, made morning and evening prayer services a fixture in the church, borrowing the practice from Judaism. The centuries-old tradition of morning prayer lives on at only a few Lexington churches, including Christ Church Cathedral in the heart of the city. Every weekday at 8 in the cathedral chapel, a volunteer prays and reads the service from the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer. It takes about 20 minutes.
Light leaks through gorgeous stained glass, and the silence crackles with reverence.
One or two people usually show up, and there often is no congregation at all. On Tuesday this week, three people prayed, including Charles G. Williamson Jr., who led the service. Williamson has been a volunteer since morning prayer started at the cathedral in the late 1980s. She has uterine cancer. Every weekday, prayers go up no matter who is or is not listening.