UPDATE: Prayerdle ended on 3 September 2022. I’m sorry, the list of words was always going to be finite, even though I included some of the lesser-known prophets and words that required some work to associate with faith and prayer. Thank you to all of you who played over the last few months. I hope you enjoyed it and that it helped you reflect on your journey. It only remains for me to say ADIEU…
-oOo-
Developing Prayerdle was a whim, a coding and vocabulary challenge building on the ideas and code of Wordle and the Byrdle parody.
I like a word game, and what particularly attracted me to Wordle were its simplicity and the generosity of its maker. The appeal of Byrdle, on the other hand, was the niche quirkiness of its choral music theme. It occurred to me that, even though Prayerdle started out as a whim and an experiment to see how many related five-letter words I could find, it could also have its own character, or charism if you like. I realised that it could have elements of Lectio Divina or Centring Prayer.
Here is one idea:
- It helps to solve crosswords and other word puzzles if you let go and let the clues sink into your deep mind. Treat the time solving the Prayerdle as a bridge into prayer.
- You can then use the solution as your sacred word in Centring Prayer, or as a way into Lectio Divina.
- Finally, take the word with you as you go through the day and reflect on it. If you play the game on your phone, let it bring you back to prayer whenever you look at it and use it for other purposes.
I use different tactics in my approach to Wordle and Byrdle. My first two Wordle guesses are usually two words made up from ACEILNORST, the ten commonest letters in the English language. When I started playing Byrdle as well, I mixed it up and started instead with yesterday’s word … if I can remember it, that is!
In some ways Byrdle is easier than Wordle, because the pool of possible solutions is smaller. (It is still possible to guess, identify and weed out letters using non-choral words.) So starting with what will definitely be the wrong answer and probably contains unhelpful letters provides a thin extra layer of challenge.
With Prayerdle I also recommend starting with yesterday’s word, but for a different reason. The aim is to remind you of yesterday itself – the moments you can give thanks for, its challenges, and its times of prayer – and then draw the thread through into today’s prayer.
In other ways Byrdle is harder than Wordle, because the solution might be a name, like Zadok or Dyson.
Similarly, sometimes the Prayerdle will be a proper noun – a well-known character or place in the Bible. Occasionally it might be a word you do not know. There are some unfamiliar terms and Greek, Hebrew and Latin words among the solutions.
Rather than get frustrated with the game or annoyed at yourself, I suggest you look up the word and reflect on what it might have to teach you, or on the story of that person or place.
However you play it, I hope you find the game nourishing, as well as challenging and fun. You can find it here.
Well done good and faithful servant for scrolling this far. As your reward, here are the different pop-up messages according to the number of guesses you needed to solve the puzzle:
- Blessed are you among mortals!
Amen and Amen! - Praise the Lord!
The Lord is my light and my salvation - Prayerdle in three answers, blessed trinity
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path - God is my refuge and my stronghold
One guess for each Gospel! - O Lord make speed to save us
O Lord make haste to help us - Lead us not into temptation
Be still and know that I am God
