Intention

INTENTION (noun)

1: a determination to act in a certain way : resolve
2: import, significance
3a : what one intends to do or bring about
  b : the object for which a prayer, mass, or pious act is offered


Carl's attention often wandered as he sat in the third row at the Tabernacle Church of the Redemption.  The Tabernacle, as it was known, had been founded by his great grandfather, and Carl felt obligated to attend services, even when he wasn't feeling particularly Christian.  His mind was on other things this morning. Other things being Miss Elizabeth's ample bosom, the smooth skin on her backside, and that little mole on the inside of her thigh, just above the top of her stocking.  Not to mention her homemade fried chicken.  Carl's mouth watered, but he wasn't sure which image was responsible.

"Let us pray, my brothers and sisters. Let us offer this prayer for a divine purpose. Let us join our voices in prayer to the good Lord with the intention that the soul of our brother Carl Jenkins may be lifted into the heavens to sing praises with the Heavenly Host."

Carl snapped out of his reverie. Intentions were usually offered for the souls of the dead, and Carl was confused.  He looked around the church at the bowed heads, the clasped hands lifted up in supplication.   As the worshipers prayed aloud for his immortal soul, Carl found their praying to be strangely soothing and horribly frightening at the same time.

"My brothers and sisters, now I will confess to you that I have sinned." Carl could see the sheen of sweat on the man's forehead, his eyes closed in shame as he revealed his true nature to his flock.

"I have sinned this very day. I confess."  Pastor Randy raised his voice to the congregation.  "I confess that I found my wife with another man.  I confess that I got my gun and I shot that man. It was my intention to kill him, and I did.  I humbly beg your forgiveness, my brethren."

Recognition like a bolt of lightning slammed through Carl, and he remembered. He deeply regretted the fact that he never got to eat that homemade fried chicken.

Gesundheit

When I hear people sneeze, my response is to tell them “Gesundheit”, which is German and means something along the lines of “Good health”. People in this area often say “Bless You!” when they hear you sneeze and it’s always made me vaguely uncomfortable. I never was really sure why, so I keep my feelings to myself and just moved along. Today, however, I was stuck at a red light for longer than expected and my brain wandered over to this subject.

The idea that the energy that you send out comes back to you is not new, and is certainly not a concept limited to any one religion. The Law of Attraction, so very popular right now, is all about this very concept: ask directly for what you want and you’ll get it.

But there has to be intention to your prayer/wish. You can’t just ask for a vague sort of blessing from the Universe, because you never know what you are going to get. If you go to McDonald's and just ask for a burger, they will look at you with pity, because there are several different choices of burger on the menu. It’s the same with prayer. You have to speak exactly what you want aloud, with intention. Just saying “Bless you” is so vague as to be practically meaningless. What are you blessing the recipient with—free pizza?

“Gesundheit”, on the other hand, is a specific request for a specific thing. Nothing vague or meaningless about it. And that is why I say it. I want to make sure that the person sneezing stays healthy. Gesundheit.