We All Come from God, and to God We All Return

If you listen closely to this 23 minute recording Dave Chappelle sounds less like a stand-up comedian and more like a person of faith. Chappelle begins the session in Arabic by telling listeners, “We all come from God. And to God we will all return.”

It’s a Muslim prayer. It’s also nearly identical to what Christians say on Ash Wednesday.

Had Chapelle not begun the series of stories and music with an invocation, to me the whole thing would still sound like a prayer. It asks, “How do you keep a despondent person alive? How do you make a person want to live?” One person’s answer, “You do something beautiful for those people whenever you can.”

Prayers may be conversations with God; they are also ways of living which draw us closer to one another and our creator. May laughter, music, food, and kindness be portals to prayer and a beautiful life.