Good Evening Dear Ones!
Remember when I asked you to write your prophetic witnesses in your journal and call them to mind in your heart? That is what we are going to do tonight. This list will be an ongoing one! So let us begin by praying these prayers from the BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER and Common of Saints:
For those who Influence Public Opinion
Almighty God, you proclaim your truth in every age by many
voices: Direct, in our time, we pray, those who speak where
many listen and write what many read; that they may do their
part in making the heart of this people wise, its mind sound, and
its will righteous; to the honor of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Social Justice
Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
In Times of Conflict
O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us,
in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront
one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work
together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us,
in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront
one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work
together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.
For those who suffer for the sake of Conscience
O God our Father, whose Son forgave his enemies while he
was suffering shame and death: Strengthen those who suffer
for the sake of conscience; when they are accused, save them
from speaking in hate; when they are rejected, save them
from bitterness; when they are imprisoned, save them from
despair; and to us your servants, give grace to respect their
witness and to discern the truth, that our society may be
cleansed and strengthened. This we ask for the sake of Jesus
Christ, our merciful and righteous Judge. Amen.
O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you, bring the nations into your fold, pour out your Spirit upon all flesh, and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Almighty God, whose prophets taught us righteousness in the care of your poor: By the guidance of your Holy Spirit, grant that we may do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly in your sight; through Jesus Christ, our Judge and Redeemer, who lives and reigns with you and the same Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Let us call out the names of our modern day prophetic witnesses. Remember these are just the beginning.
Because in every age you have called brave souls to proclaim righteousness for the transformation of the world, that all may welcome the coming of your holy reign.
I call the name of Jim Wallis
I call the name of Pope Francis
I call the name of Bishop Michael Curry
I call the name of the Dalai Lama
I call the name of Standing Rock Water Protectors
I call the name of The Dreamers
I call the name of Cesar Chavez
I call the name of Dolores Huerta
I call the name of Maria Moreno
I call the name of Lideres Campesinas
I call the name of Dorothy Day
I call the name of Eleanor Roosevelt
I call the name of Jane Addams
I call the name of Nelson Mandela
I call the name of Martin Luther King Jr.
I call the name of Anwar Sadat
I call the name of Ruby Sales
I call the name of William Barber
I call the name of Desmond Tutu
I call the name of Shane Claiborne
I call the name of John Pavlovitz
I call the name of Joan Chittister
I call the name of Gene Robinson
I call the name of Jimmy Carter
I call the name of Jane Goodall
I call the name of Autumn Peletier
I call the name of Susan Russell
I call the name of all of our unnamed family members who are speaking out.
I call the name of Judy Shepard
I call the names of all who were on our list of youth remembering.
I call the name of Greta Thunberg
I call the name of Malala Yousafzai
I call the name of Elizabeth Smart
I call the name of Joan of Arc
I call the name of the Prophet Jeremiah
I call the name of Emma Gonzalez
I call the name of Sara Mora
I call the name of Khloe Thompson
I call the name of Ruby Bridges
I call the name of Ruby Sales
I call the name of Aija Mayrock
I call the name of Marley Dias
I call the name of Lane Murdock
I call the name of Mari Copeny
I call the name of Deja Foxx
I call the name of Nupol Kiazolu
I call the name of Yara Shahidi
I call the name of Shamma bint Suhail Faris Mazrui
I call the name of Sophie Cruz
I call the name of Anne Frank
I call the name of Alexandra Scott
I call the name of Claudette Colvin
I call the name of Jazz Jennings
I call the name of Bana Alabed
I call the name of Audrey Faye Hendricks
I call the name of Capri Everitt
I call the name of Mary Shelley
I call the name of Yusra Mardini
I call the name of Margaret E. Knight
I call the name of Sylvia Mendez
I call the name of Bindi Irwin
I call the name of Cameron Kasky
I call the name of David Hogg
I call the name of Alex Wind
I call the name of Gavin Grimm
I call the name of Schuyler Bailar
I call the name of Ryan Jacobs Flores
I call the name of Yolanda Renee King
We add these names lovingly to our #WalkWithMeOnOurJourneysWallOfLoveHonorAndJustice
We Speak these names again! The Birmingham Church Bombing Victims
Addie Mae Collins (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Cynthia Wesley (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Carole Robertson (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Carol Denise McNair (11)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
I call the name of Malala Yousafzai
I call the name of Elizabeth Smart
I call the name of Joan of Arc
I call the name of the Prophet Jeremiah
I call the name of Emma Gonzalez
I call the name of Sara Mora
I call the name of Khloe Thompson
I call the name of Ruby Bridges
I call the name of Ruby Sales
I call the name of Aija Mayrock
I call the name of Marley Dias
I call the name of Lane Murdock
I call the name of Mari Copeny
I call the name of Deja Foxx
I call the name of Nupol Kiazolu
I call the name of Yara Shahidi
I call the name of Shamma bint Suhail Faris Mazrui
I call the name of Sophie Cruz
I call the name of Anne Frank
I call the name of Alexandra Scott
I call the name of Claudette Colvin
I call the name of Jazz Jennings
I call the name of Bana Alabed
I call the name of Audrey Faye Hendricks
I call the name of Capri Everitt
I call the name of Mary Shelley
I call the name of Yusra Mardini
I call the name of Margaret E. Knight
I call the name of Sylvia Mendez
I call the name of Bindi Irwin
I call the name of Cameron Kasky
I call the name of David Hogg
I call the name of Alex Wind
I call the name of Gavin Grimm
I call the name of Schuyler Bailar
I call the name of Ryan Jacobs Flores
I call the name of Yolanda Renee King
We add these names lovingly to our #WalkWithMeOnOurJourneysWallOfLoveHonorAndJustice
We Speak these names again! The Birmingham Church Bombing Victims
Addie Mae Collins (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Cynthia Wesley (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Carole Robertson (14)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Carol Denise McNair (11)
If you Speak My Name I Will Live Forever.
Come let us worship:
Joseph Barth: A Grace
We give thanks for Being;
We give thanks for being here;
We give thanks for being here together.
Micah 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
1 Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes; these have been redeemed from humanity as first fruits for God and the Lamb. Revelation 14:4
I will turn their mourning into joy; I will comfort them and give them gladness for sorrow. Jeremiah 31:13
"The wolf will live with the lamb,
and the leopard will lie down with the young goat;
the calf and the young lion will feed together,
and a little child will lead them."
Isaiah 11:6
"Jesus was telling them a parable about their need to pray continuously and not to be discouraged. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him, asking, ‘Give me justice in this case against my adversary.’ For a while he refused but finally said to himself, I don’t fear God or respect people, but I will give this widow justice because she keeps bothering me. Otherwise, there will be no end to her coming here and embarrassing me.” The Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. Won’t God provide justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he be slow to help them? I tell you, he will give them justice quickly. But when the Human One comes, will he find faithfulness on earth?”
Luke 18:1-8
“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions”
- Acts 2:17
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." - Matthew 5:9
“This meeting fervently recommends to the deep attention of all our members, that they be religiously guarded against approving or showing the least connivance at war, either by attending at or viewing military operations, or in any wise encouraging the unstable deceitful spirit of party, by joining with political devices or associations, however speciously disguised under the ensnaring subtleties commonly attendant thereon…As we are called out of wars and fightings, so let them be as seldom as possible the subjects of our conversations; but let an holy care rest upon us, to abide in that power which gives dominion over the hopes and fears that arise from the concerns of an unstable world, which tend, as they are admitted into the mind, to lessen the trust on that rock which is immovable.”
- Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, 1806, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Faith and Practice (Quakers)
Joseph Barth: A Grace
We give thanks for Being;
We give thanks for being here;
We give thanks for being here together.
Micah 6:8
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
1 Corinthians 13:11
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes; these have been redeemed from humanity as first fruits for God and the Lamb. Revelation 14:4
I will turn their mourning into joy; I will comfort them and give them gladness for sorrow. Jeremiah 31:13
"The wolf will live with the lamb,
and the leopard will lie down with the young goat;
the calf and the young lion will feed together,
and a little child will lead them."
Isaiah 11:6
"Jesus was telling them a parable about their need to pray continuously and not to be discouraged. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him, asking, ‘Give me justice in this case against my adversary.’ For a while he refused but finally said to himself, I don’t fear God or respect people, but I will give this widow justice because she keeps bothering me. Otherwise, there will be no end to her coming here and embarrassing me.” The Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. Won’t God provide justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he be slow to help them? I tell you, he will give them justice quickly. But when the Human One comes, will he find faithfulness on earth?”
Luke 18:1-8
Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for thse who abuse you. Do good and lend, expecting nothing in return; for God is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish.
Be merciful as your father is merciful. Judge not and you will not be judged. Condemn not and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and it will be given to you; for the measure you give will be the measure you receive. From Luke 6:27-38
Do not ask anxiously, What are we to eat? What are we to drink? What shall we wear? The whole world runs after such things. Set your heart and mind on God’s commonwealth and justice first, and all the rest will come to you as well. So do not be anxious about tomorrow. Today has enough problems of its own; tomorrow can look after itself. Matthew 6:31-34
“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions”
- Acts 2:17
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." - Matthew 5:9
“This meeting fervently recommends to the deep attention of all our members, that they be religiously guarded against approving or showing the least connivance at war, either by attending at or viewing military operations, or in any wise encouraging the unstable deceitful spirit of party, by joining with political devices or associations, however speciously disguised under the ensnaring subtleties commonly attendant thereon…As we are called out of wars and fightings, so let them be as seldom as possible the subjects of our conversations; but let an holy care rest upon us, to abide in that power which gives dominion over the hopes and fears that arise from the concerns of an unstable world, which tend, as they are admitted into the mind, to lessen the trust on that rock which is immovable.”
- Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, 1806, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Faith and Practice (Quakers)
We light our candles in honor of all the prophetic witnesses in the world who are speaking truth to power and leading us on the path of change.
THE LIGHTING OF THE CANDLES - Anonymous
Lest we forget the great traditions of freedom and faith which are the heritage of humanity; lest we forget the pioneers, the statesmen, the bridge builders, the artists; and lest we forget You, the God of our fore bears who is our God also:
We light this candle of remembrance.
For the hope of a better world, in which righteousness and peace shall prevail among the people of the earth, and to create which is the task of the generations in which we stand, as well as for the courage and faith we shall need if we are to carry on this unfinished work:
We light this candle of consecration.
May the flame upon the altar of free faith shine in our hearts al ways, reminding us of the dark places to which we may carry light and strengthening us in every moment of doubt and discouragement with unwavering faith in You whom we serve and whose we are.
O Gracious Light Phos hilaron
O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven,
O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!
Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.
or this setting
Light of the World Phos hilaron
Light of the world, in grace and beauty,
Mirror of God’s eternal face,
Transparent flame of love’s free duty,
You bring salvation to our race.
Now, as we see the lights of evening,
We raise our voice in hymns of praise;
Worthy are you of endless blessing,
Sun of our night, lamp of our days.
Hail, gladdening Light, of God’s pure glory poured,
Who is the immortal Father, heavenly, blest,
Holiest of holies, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Who is the immortal Father, heavenly, blest,
Holiest of holies, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Now we are come to the sun’s hour of rest,
The lights of evening round us shine,
We hymn the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit divine.
The lights of evening round us shine,
We hymn the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit divine.
Worthiest art thou at all times to be sung,
With undefilèd tongue,
Son of our God, Giver of life, alone!
Therefore in all the world thy glories, Lord, they own.
With undefilèd tongue,
Son of our God, Giver of life, alone!
Therefore in all the world thy glories, Lord, they own.
Gracious and loving God as we meet in community this evening to pray and light candles let us remember all of our family members who do not have community, family, where loving shoulders and soft places in which to fall are available. We pray for the lost, lonely, and afraid that they may be found and brought into the family of God and wrapped in a quilt of comfort. We pray for our family members who are refugees, asylum seekers, children in foster care, children who are seeking to be adopted and all who are waiting for their forever homes wherever that may be. We pray that we may practice radical hospitality and welcome all of our family members and especially the strangers who are in our midst. We pray that we may keep our eyes on all of our loved ones and pray that no one, not one will fall through the cracks. We pray that a community of CALM (Compassion, Acceptance, Love, and Mercy) may spring up around the world and especially where there is hatred, violence, terror, and division. We pray that peace, justice, and mercy may prevail upon Earth, that we may be peacemakers and called the Children of God. Amen.
Book of Common Prayer: Forgive Us, O God
Forgive, O God, those national sins which so easily beset us: our wanton waste of soil and air and water; our desecration of natural beauty; our heedlessness of those who come after us, if only we be served; our lust for money; our contempt for what is small and worship of what is big. For wrongs done to our land, our people, our heritage, and our future, as well as for things left undone, forgive us, O God.
Book of Common Prayer: Forgive Us, O God
Forgive, O God, those national sins which so easily beset us: our wanton waste of soil and air and water; our desecration of natural beauty; our heedlessness of those who come after us, if only we be served; our lust for money; our contempt for what is small and worship of what is big. For wrongs done to our land, our people, our heritage, and our future, as well as for things left undone, forgive us, O God.
Beacon Song and Service Book: The Work of the World
Wondrous giver of all things, this world is full of Your riches. We thank You for the splendor of nature and for Your bountiful provision for our human needs. May we not waste Your gifts nor needlessly ignore the welfare of others in our use of them. We seek to do our part in the work of the world, and so enter into fellowship with all who toil and all who create. We would recognize the right of every human being to share in what You give. We would help to make our planet a true home for all of Your children, where each may have an equal opportunity both for work and for the rewards of work.
Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone's face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love?' These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will be many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.
Henri Nouwen
A Smudging Prayer (Metis Aboriginal Ministries)
Creator,
our Father in heaven,
we come to you as your children.
We confess that we are weak and broken images of you.
We pray for the forgiveness and healing you give in Jesus Christ. May his Spirit clean our spirits, minds, hearts, and bodies.
We pray that your Holy Spirit will help us to worship in spirit and truth.
We pray in the name of Jesus, so that his Spirit will carry our prayers to you. Amen.
Creator,
our Father in heaven,
we come to you as your children.
We confess that we are weak and broken images of you.
We pray for the forgiveness and healing you give in Jesus Christ. May his Spirit clean our spirits, minds, hearts, and bodies.
We pray that your Holy Spirit will help us to worship in spirit and truth.
We pray in the name of Jesus, so that his Spirit will carry our prayers to you. Amen.
We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better." - Thurgood Marshall
A prayer from The Arusha Call to Discipleship
Loving God, we thank you for the gift of life in all its diversity and beauty. Lord Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, we praise you that you came to find the lost, to free the oppressed, to heal the sick, and to convert the self-centred. Holy Spirit, we rejoice that you breathe in the life of the world and are poured out into our hearts. As we live in the Spirit, may we also walk in the Spirit. Grant us faith and courage to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus: becoming pilgrims of justice and peace in our time. For the blessing of your people, the sustaining of the earth, and the glory of your name. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
Loving God, we thank you for the gift of life in all its diversity and beauty. Lord Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, we praise you that you came to find the lost, to free the oppressed, to heal the sick, and to convert the self-centred. Holy Spirit, we rejoice that you breathe in the life of the world and are poured out into our hearts. As we live in the Spirit, may we also walk in the Spirit. Grant us faith and courage to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus: becoming pilgrims of justice and peace in our time. For the blessing of your people, the sustaining of the earth, and the glory of your name. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.
In Lak 'Ech by Luis Valdez
Tú eres mi otro yo.
You are my other me.
Si te hago daño a ti,
If I do harm to you,
Me hago daño a mi mismo.
I do harm to myself.
Si te amo y respeto,
If I love and respect you,
Me amo y respeto yo.
I love and respect myself.
The Woke Prayers of St. Francis
Help us O God to be woke!
Woke as your peacemakers, change makers, heart changers, and love energy bringers!
Woke to the hatred so that we may sow seeds of love.
Woke to the injury so that we may heal the hurt and cease the harm.
Woke to the divisiveness that we may be eager to heal and unite as one neighborhood and family.
Woke to uncertainty that will lead us to be renewed in faith.
Woke to the despair of all our neighbors so that we may sow seeds of radical hope, love, hospitality, and inclusion.
Woke to the knowledge that we are God's beloved children. Help us to be woke to sing the words of "Light One Candle"
LIGHT ONE CANDLE
Peter Yarrow
Light one candle for the Maccabee children
With thanks that their light didn't die
Light one candle for the pain they endured
When their right to exist was denied
Light one candle for the terrible sacrifice
Justice and freedom demand
But light one candle for the wisdom to know
When the peacemaker's time is at hand
chorus:
Don't let the light go out!
It's lasted for so many years!
Don't let the light go out!
Let it shine through our love and our tears.
Light one candle for the strength that we need
To never become our own foe
And light one candle for those who are suffering
Pain we learned so long ago
Light one candle for all we believe in
That anger not tear us apart
And light one candle to bind us together
With peace as the song in our hearts
(chorus)
What is the memory that's valued so highly
That we keep it alive in that flame?
What's the commitment to those who have died
That we cry out they've not died in vain?
We have come this far always believing
That justice would somehow prevail
This is the burden, this is the promise
This is why we will not fail!
(chorus)
Don't let the light go out!
Don't let the light go out!
Don't let the light go out!
Help us to be woke enough not to think of ourselves being the comforted, help us be the comforters and wounded healers.
Help not to be know it alls and be woke to understand what is plaguing our inner beings, neighbors, neighborhoods, the least of these, our family members.
God wake us up to be Woke to your agape love so that we may love everything that you have made. Wake us to be Woke to Radical Love, Hospitality, and inclusion.
Help us to know that being truly woke means being open to radical and random acts of kindness and giving. Where the giver is given and receives much by acts of giving.
Help us to be woke enough to forgive and then find ourselves being actually forgiven
God Wake us Up to Be Woke to know that death isn't the end but only the beginning of a new birth in your heavenly Kindom. Amen and let it be so!
A New Unsettling Force
We’re a new unsettling force
And we are powerful a new
unsettling force
And we’re here, we’re a new
unsettling force
For liberation and we’ve got nothing
to lose but our chains
And we’ve got nothing
to lose but our chains
- Luke Nephew
We’re a new unsettling force
And we are powerful a new
unsettling force
And we’re here, we’re a new
unsettling force
For liberation and we’ve got nothing
to lose but our chains
And we’ve got nothing
to lose but our chains
- Luke Nephew
Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from death.
(Proverbs 10:2, New Revised Standard Version)
but righteousness delivers from death.
(Proverbs 10:2, New Revised Standard Version)
High God, holy God:
you rule the ways of peoples,
and govern every earthly government.
Work with those who work for peace.
Make every person in authority an agent of your reconciliation,
and every diplomat an ambassador of hope.
Bring peace and goodwill among all people,
Fulfilling among us the promise made
in Jesus Christ, who was born to save the world.
(Presbyterian Church USA, Book of Common Prayer)
God our creator and redeemer, you call us to be bold and brave in body and faith. You call us to rise in body and spirit to love and serve each other, you, and all creation. Let us not grow weary as we remain persistent in our demands for climate justice. Walk with us, dear God. Amen.
Lord Jesus, remind us daily of who we are and who you have called us to be – a people committed to loving you and loving your people and all of creation with all of who we are. And let us be true to that calling every day.
We are moulded, each one of us,
in the image of God,
and within our souls there is a fingerprint
none can erase.
We pray for those who have no regard
for anyone but self,
who put no value on human life.
For nations and individuals who abuse and kill.
We are not called to be judge or jury,
but we are called to be agents of change,
and if the butterfly that flaps its wings
should be our attitude to others
then so be it, Lord,
and may the hurricane this generates
somewhere within the world
reach into the hearts and souls of those
for whom we pray, and reveal to them
how precious are those
for whom they have no love,
and how precious are they
who now bring tears to the eyes of God.
- A Prayer for Peace from the Jesuit International Day of Peace page
Lord Jesus, remind us daily of who we are and who you have called us to be – a people committed to loving you and loving your people and all of creation with all of who we are. And let us be true to that calling every day.
We are moulded, each one of us,
in the image of God,
and within our souls there is a fingerprint
none can erase.
We pray for those who have no regard
for anyone but self,
who put no value on human life.
For nations and individuals who abuse and kill.
We are not called to be judge or jury,
but we are called to be agents of change,
and if the butterfly that flaps its wings
should be our attitude to others
then so be it, Lord,
and may the hurricane this generates
somewhere within the world
reach into the hearts and souls of those
for whom we pray, and reveal to them
how precious are those
for whom they have no love,
and how precious are they
who now bring tears to the eyes of God.
- A Prayer for Peace from the Jesuit International Day of Peace page
6 The Lord executes righteousness *
and judgment for all who are oppressed.
7 He made his ways known to Moses *
and his works to the children of Israel.
8 The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, *
slow to anger and of great kindness.
9 He will not always accuse us, *
nor will he keep his anger for ever.
10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, *
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, *
so is his mercy great upon those who fear him.
12 As far as the east is from the west, *
so far has he removed our sins from us.
13 As a father cares for his children, *
so does the Lord care for those who fear him.
14 For he himself knows whereof we are made; *
he remembers that we are but dust.
and judgment for all who are oppressed.
7 He made his ways known to Moses *
and his works to the children of Israel.
8 The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, *
slow to anger and of great kindness.
9 He will not always accuse us, *
nor will he keep his anger for ever.
10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, *
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, *
so is his mercy great upon those who fear him.
12 As far as the east is from the west, *
so far has he removed our sins from us.
13 As a father cares for his children, *
so does the Lord care for those who fear him.
14 For he himself knows whereof we are made; *
he remembers that we are but dust.
Wisdom 5:15–20
The Reward of the Righteous
15 But the righteous live for ever,
and their reward is with the Lord;
the Most High takes care of them.
16 Therefore they will receive a glorious crown
and a beautiful diadem from the hand of the Lord,
because with his right hand he will cover them,
and with his arm he will shield them.
17 The Lord* will take his zeal as his whole armour,
and will arm all creation to repel* his enemies;
18 he will put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and wear impartial justice as a helmet;
19 he will take holiness as an invincible shield,
20 and sharpen stern wrath for a sword,
and creation will join with him to fight against his frenzied foes.
Exodus 22:21–27
21 You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt. 22You shall not abuse any widow or orphan. 23If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will surely heed their cry; 24my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children orphans.
25 If you lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them. 26If you take your neighbour’s cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes down; 27for it may be your neighbour’s only clothing to use as cover; in what else shall that person sleep? And if your neighbour cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate.
1 Give the King your justice, O God, *
and your righteousness to the King's Son;
2 That he may rule your people righteously *
and the poor with justice.
3 That the mountains may bring prosperity to the people, *
and the little hills bring righteousness.
4 He shall defend the needy among the people; *
he shall rescue the poor and crush the oppressor.
12 For he shall deliver the poor who cries out in distress, *
and the oppressed who has no helper.
13 He shall have pity on the lowly and poor; *
he shall preserve the lives of the needy.
14 He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence, *
and dear shall their blood be in his sight.
1 John 4:16–21
16 So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.
God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. 17Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgement, because as he is, so are we in this world. 18There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. 19We love* because he first loved us. 20Those who say, ‘I love God’, and hate their brothers or sisters,* are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister* whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. 21The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters* also.
113 Laudate, pueri
1 Hallelujah!
Give praise, you servants of the Lord; *
praise the Name of the Lord.
2 Let the Name of the Lord be blessed, *
from this time forth for evermore.
3 From the rising of the sun to its going down *
let the Name of the Lord be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations, *
and his glory above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God, who sits enthroned on high, *
but stoops to behold the heavens and the earth?
6 He takes up the weak out of the dust *
and lifts up the poor from the ashes.
7 He sets them with the princes, *
with the princes of his people.
8 He makes the woman of a childless house *
to be a joyful mother of children.
Luke 4:14–21
14 Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. 15He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.
16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
18 ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’
20And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21Then he began to say to them, ‘Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’
12 Salvum me fac
1 Help me, Lord, for there is no godly one left; *
the faithful have vanished from among us.
2 Everyone speaks falsely with his neighbor; *
with a smooth tongue they speak from a double heart.
3 Oh, that the Lord would cut off all smooth tongues, *
and close the lips that utter proud boasts!
4 Those who say, "With our tongue will we prevail; *
our lips are our own; who is lord over us?"
5 "Because the needy are oppressed,
and the poor cry out in misery, "
I will rise up," says the Lord,
"and give them the help they long for."
6 The words of the Lord are pure words, *
like silver refined from ore
and purified seven times in the fire.
7 O Lord, watch over us *
and save us from this generation for ever.
God of liberating power, empower courageous evangelists among us, that men and women everywhere may know the freedom that you offer; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
For the Human Family
O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
For the Human Family
O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us
through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole
human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which
infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us;
unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and
confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in
your good time, all nations and races may serve you in
harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer or the alternative is said. (From A New Zealand Prayer Book)
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
Or
Eternal Spirit,
Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and that shall be,
Father and Mother of us all,
Loving God, in whom is heaven:
The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples
of the world!
Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom
sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
now and for ever. Amen.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
Or
Eternal Spirit,
Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and that shall be,
Father and Mother of us all,
Loving God, in whom is heaven:
The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples
of the world!
Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom
sustain our hope and come on earth.
With the bread we need for today, feed us.
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
now and for ever. Amen.
For the Poor and the Neglected
Almighty and most merciful God, we remember before you
all poor and neglected persons whom it would be easy for us
to forget: the homeless and the destitute, the old and the sick,
and all who have none to care for them. Help us to heal those
who are broken in body or spirit, and to turn their sorrow
into joy. Grant this, Father, for the love of your Son, who for
our sake became poor, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For the Oppressed
Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Beatitudes Matthew 5:3–12
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven. (5:3)
Blessed are those who mourn: for they will be comforted. (5:4)
Blessed are the meek: for they will inherit the earth. (5:5)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness: for they will be filled. (5:6)
Blessed are the merciful: for they will be shown mercy. (5:7)
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they will see God. (5:8)
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they will be called children of God. (5:9)
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (5:10
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven. (5:3)
Blessed are those who mourn: for they will be comforted. (5:4)
Blessed are the meek: for they will inherit the earth. (5:5)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness: for they will be filled. (5:6)
Blessed are the merciful: for they will be shown mercy. (5:7)
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they will see God. (5:8)
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they will be called children of God. (5:9)
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (5:10
Holy God we come before you this night with many things on our heart and minds.
We ask that you be with us as we pray for ourselves and others.
We pray in remembrance of those who have entered the Thin Places and for all who mourn especially_____________
We pray for all those who are receiving hospice care and who are dying. We pray for our family members,hospice workers, clergy, and friends who sit vigil at bedside.
We pray for all refugees who are seeking asylum in any country. . Help us to be welcoming to all refugees where ever they may come from Help us to fine tune our thinking and recognize that our family members who may be illegal immigrants may be actually refugees. Help us to see them as The Least of These.
We pray for all who are ill and have chronic illnesses and pain. That they may be healed, comforted, and that their suffering will be relieved.
We pray that there may be peace in this world ant that we may be united in love as Your Family O, God.
We pray for all our most vulnerable family members who are in need of shelter, food, clothing, medical care, and a comforting and compassionate ear and soft place to fall.
We pray for the stranger, resident alien, and all of our family members whom we have yet to meet. May we be welcoming, loving, and compassionate.
God settle our bodies, minds, and spirits as we take our rest tonight. Be with those who have asked us to pray especially____________ heal, relieve, comfort and may they feel your abiding love and presence.
All this we ask in Jesus Most Holy Name. Amen.
We ask that you be with us as we pray for ourselves and others.
We pray in remembrance of those who have entered the Thin Places and for all who mourn especially_____________
We pray for all those who are receiving hospice care and who are dying. We pray for our family members,hospice workers, clergy, and friends who sit vigil at bedside.
We pray for all refugees who are seeking asylum in any country. . Help us to be welcoming to all refugees where ever they may come from Help us to fine tune our thinking and recognize that our family members who may be illegal immigrants may be actually refugees. Help us to see them as The Least of These.
We pray for all who are ill and have chronic illnesses and pain. That they may be healed, comforted, and that their suffering will be relieved.
We pray that there may be peace in this world ant that we may be united in love as Your Family O, God.
We pray for all our most vulnerable family members who are in need of shelter, food, clothing, medical care, and a comforting and compassionate ear and soft place to fall.
We pray for the stranger, resident alien, and all of our family members whom we have yet to meet. May we be welcoming, loving, and compassionate.
God settle our bodies, minds, and spirits as we take our rest tonight. Be with those who have asked us to pray especially____________ heal, relieve, comfort and may they feel your abiding love and presence.
All this we ask in Jesus Most Holy Name. Amen.
From Prayers of Power
The Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh: A Litany for Peace
As we are together praying for Peace, let us be truly with each other.
Silence
Let us pay attention to our breathing.
Silence
Let us be relaxed in our bodies and our minds.
Silence
Let us return to ourselves and become wholly ourselves.
Silence
Let us be aware of the Source of Being common to us all and to all that is.
Silence
Evoking the presence of the Great Companion, let us fill our hearts with our own compassion—towards ourselves and toward all living beings.
Silence
Let us pray that all living beings realize that they are all nourished from the same Source of Life.
Silence
Let us pray that we ourselves cease to be the cause of needless suffering.
Silence
Let us pray that we may live in a way which will not needlessly deprive other living beings of air, water, food, shelter, or the chance to live in health.
Silence
With reverence for Life and with awareness of the sufferings that are going on around us, let us pray for the establishment of peace in our hearts and on earth.
FOR WORLD NEIGHBORLINESS - Peter Marshall
O God, we pray for a broader vision of the needs of humanity, and a deeper compassion to fill those needs; for a planting of the seeds of concern for all humanity in our hearts; for a tapping of the wells of generosity.
May we live together as people who have been forgiven a great debt.
May we be gentle, walking softly with one another.
May we be understanding, lest we shall add to the world’s sorrow or cause to flow needless tears.
May we be as anxious for the rights of others as we are for our own.
May we be as eager to forgive as we are to seek forgiveness.
May we know no barriers of creed or race or sex, that our love may be like Yours—a love that sees all people as Your children and our kin.
May we be ministers of humanity.
James Martineau: Prayer
A PRAYER OF CONSECRATION- James Martineau
Eternal God, who commits to us the swift and solemn trust of life: since we know not what a day may bring forth, but only that the hour for serving You is always present, may we wake to Your instant claims, not waiting for tomorrow, but yielding today. Lay to rest the resistance of our passion, indolence, or fear. Consecrate the way our feet may go, and the humblest work will shine, and the roughest faces be made plain. Lift us above unrighteous anger and mistrust into faith and hope and charity, through steady reliance on You. So may we be modest in our time of wealth, patient under disappointment, ready for danger, serene in death. In all things, draw us to Yourself that Your lost image may be traced again, and we may be at one with You.
Diann Neu: Blessed Be Our Hands
Blessed be the work of our hands.
Blessed be these hands that touch life.
Blessed be these hands that nurture creativity.
Blessed be these hands that hold pain.
Blessed be these hands that embrace with passion.
Blessed be these hands that tend gardens.
Blessed bed these hands that close in anger.
Blessed be these hands that plant new seeds.
Blessed be these hands that harvest ripe fields.
Blessed be these hands that clean, wash, mop, scrub.
Blessed be these hands that become knotty with age.
Blessed be these hands that wrinkle and scar from doing justice.
Blessed are these hands that reach out and are received.
Blessed are these hands that hold the promise of the future.
Blessed be the works of our hands and hearts.
Walter Rauschenbusch: Prayers
FOR OUR WORLD, OUR EARTH
O God, we thank You for this universe, our great home; for the vastness and richness of our cosmic environment; for the manifoldness of life on the planet of which we are a part.
We are thankful for the morning sun and the clouds and the constellations of stars.
We rejoice in the salt sea and the deep waters and green leaves of grass.
We thank You for our sense by which we experience earth’s splendor.
We would have souls open to all this joy, souls saved from being so weighted with care that we pass unseeing when the thornbush by the wayside is aflame with beauty.
Enlarge within us a sense of fellowship with all that lives and moves and has being in space and time, especially with all who share this earth as their common home with us.
Remembering with shame that in the past, we human beings have all too often exercised high dominion with ruthless cruelty, we admit that the voice of the earth, which should have gone up to You in song, has been a groan of travail.
May we so live that our world may not be ravished by our greed nor spoiled by our ignorance.
May we hand on earth’s common heritage of life, undiminished in joy when our bodies return in peace to You, our Great Mother who has nourished them.
EVENING PRAYER
O God, we praise You for the night and for sleep. Release our limbs of toil. Smooth our brow of care. Grant us a refreshing draught of forgetfulness. Comfort those who toss on a bed of pain, or whose nerves crave sleep and find it not. Save them from despondent thoughts in the darkness. May they learn to lean on Your all-pervading life and love so, their souls may grow tranquil and their bodies may rest.
As we are together praying for Peace, let us be truly with each other.
Silence
Let us pay attention to our breathing.
Silence
Let us be relaxed in our bodies and our minds.
Silence
Let us return to ourselves and become wholly ourselves.
Silence
Let us be aware of the Source of Being common to us all and to all that is.
Silence
Evoking the presence of the Great Companion, let us fill our hearts with our own compassion—towards ourselves and toward all living beings.
Silence
Let us pray that all living beings realize that they are all nourished from the same Source of Life.
Silence
Let us pray that we ourselves cease to be the cause of needless suffering.
Silence
Let us pray that we may live in a way which will not needlessly deprive other living beings of air, water, food, shelter, or the chance to live in health.
Silence
With reverence for Life and with awareness of the sufferings that are going on around us, let us pray for the establishment of peace in our hearts and on earth.
FOR WORLD NEIGHBORLINESS - Peter Marshall
O God, we pray for a broader vision of the needs of humanity, and a deeper compassion to fill those needs; for a planting of the seeds of concern for all humanity in our hearts; for a tapping of the wells of generosity.
May we live together as people who have been forgiven a great debt.
May we be gentle, walking softly with one another.
May we be understanding, lest we shall add to the world’s sorrow or cause to flow needless tears.
May we be as anxious for the rights of others as we are for our own.
May we be as eager to forgive as we are to seek forgiveness.
May we know no barriers of creed or race or sex, that our love may be like Yours—a love that sees all people as Your children and our kin.
May we be ministers of humanity.
James Martineau: Prayer
A PRAYER OF CONSECRATION- James Martineau
Eternal God, who commits to us the swift and solemn trust of life: since we know not what a day may bring forth, but only that the hour for serving You is always present, may we wake to Your instant claims, not waiting for tomorrow, but yielding today. Lay to rest the resistance of our passion, indolence, or fear. Consecrate the way our feet may go, and the humblest work will shine, and the roughest faces be made plain. Lift us above unrighteous anger and mistrust into faith and hope and charity, through steady reliance on You. So may we be modest in our time of wealth, patient under disappointment, ready for danger, serene in death. In all things, draw us to Yourself that Your lost image may be traced again, and we may be at one with You.
Diann Neu: Blessed Be Our Hands
Blessed be the work of our hands.
Blessed be these hands that touch life.
Blessed be these hands that nurture creativity.
Blessed be these hands that hold pain.
Blessed be these hands that embrace with passion.
Blessed be these hands that tend gardens.
Blessed bed these hands that close in anger.
Blessed be these hands that plant new seeds.
Blessed be these hands that harvest ripe fields.
Blessed be these hands that clean, wash, mop, scrub.
Blessed be these hands that become knotty with age.
Blessed be these hands that wrinkle and scar from doing justice.
Blessed are these hands that reach out and are received.
Blessed are these hands that hold the promise of the future.
Blessed be the works of our hands and hearts.
Walter Rauschenbusch: Prayers
FOR OUR WORLD, OUR EARTH
O God, we thank You for this universe, our great home; for the vastness and richness of our cosmic environment; for the manifoldness of life on the planet of which we are a part.
We are thankful for the morning sun and the clouds and the constellations of stars.
We rejoice in the salt sea and the deep waters and green leaves of grass.
We thank You for our sense by which we experience earth’s splendor.
We would have souls open to all this joy, souls saved from being so weighted with care that we pass unseeing when the thornbush by the wayside is aflame with beauty.
Enlarge within us a sense of fellowship with all that lives and moves and has being in space and time, especially with all who share this earth as their common home with us.
Remembering with shame that in the past, we human beings have all too often exercised high dominion with ruthless cruelty, we admit that the voice of the earth, which should have gone up to You in song, has been a groan of travail.
May we so live that our world may not be ravished by our greed nor spoiled by our ignorance.
May we hand on earth’s common heritage of life, undiminished in joy when our bodies return in peace to You, our Great Mother who has nourished them.
EVENING PRAYER
O God, we praise You for the night and for sleep. Release our limbs of toil. Smooth our brow of care. Grant us a refreshing draught of forgetfulness. Comfort those who toss on a bed of pain, or whose nerves crave sleep and find it not. Save them from despondent thoughts in the darkness. May they learn to lean on Your all-pervading life and love so, their souls may grow tranquil and their bodies may rest.
Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of
the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you
may do his will, working in you that which is pleasing in his
sight; through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and
ever. Hebrews 13:20-21
Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or
weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who
sleep. Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary, bless
the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the
joyous; and all for your love's sake. Amen.
The Song of Simeon Nunc Dimittis
Luke 2:29-32
Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of your people Israel.
The Wisdom of God
the Love of God
and the Grace of God
strengthen you
to be Christ’s hands and heart in this world,
in the name of the Holy Trinity. Amen.
(source: Celtic)
++++
Bonus Prayers:
A LITANY OF ALL THE SAINTS (Please click here for more information on A Litany of All The Saints)
Cantor Let us go forth in peace.
People In the name of Christ. Amen.
People In the name of Christ. Amen.
For all the saints, who from their labor rest,
Who thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy Name, O Jesus, be for ever blessed.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones present at our beginnings:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Abraham and Sarah,
Isaac and Rebecca,
Jacob and Rachel and Leah,
makers of the covenant, forebears of our race:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Elizabeth and Simeon,
Joseph, Monica and Helen,
exemplars in the love and care of children:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
John the baptizer, map-maker of the Lord's coming:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Abraham and Sarah,
Isaac and Rebecca,
Jacob and Rachel and Leah,
makers of the covenant, forebears of our race:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Elizabeth and Simeon,
Joseph, Monica and Helen,
exemplars in the love and care of children:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
John the baptizer, map-maker of the Lord's coming:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might:
Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;
Thou, in the darkness drear, the one true Light.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones who showed the good news to be the way of life:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Thomas the doubter;
Augustine of Canterbury;
Francis Xavier;
Samuel Joseph Schereschewsky;
all travelers who carried the Gospel to distant places:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Bernard and Dominic;
Catherine of Siena, the scourge of popes;
John and Charles Wesley, preachers in the streets;
all whose power of speaking gave life to the written word:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Benedict of Nursia,
Teresa of Avila;
Nicholas Ferrar;
Elizabeth Ann Seton;
Richard Meux Benson;
Charles de Foucauld;
all founders of communities:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Thomas the doubter;
Augustine of Canterbury;
Francis Xavier;
Samuel Joseph Schereschewsky;
all travelers who carried the Gospel to distant places:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Bernard and Dominic;
Catherine of Siena, the scourge of popes;
John and Charles Wesley, preachers in the streets;
all whose power of speaking gave life to the written word:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Benedict of Nursia,
Teresa of Avila;
Nicholas Ferrar;
Elizabeth Ann Seton;
Richard Meux Benson;
Charles de Foucauld;
all founders of communities:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
O may thy soldiers, faithful, true, and bold,
Fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
And win, with them, the victor's crown of gold.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones who gave their lives to the care of others:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Louis, king of France;
Margaret, queen of Scotland;
Gandhi the mahatma, reproach to the churches;
Dag Hammarskjold the bureaucrat;
all who made governance an act of faith:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Peter of the keys, denier of the Lord;
Ambrose of Milan, who answered the Church's summons;
Hilda, abbess at Whitby;
Robert Grosseteste, bishop of Lincoln, protector of the Jews;
Jean-Baptiste Vianney, cure d' Ars,
patient hearer of catalogues of sins;
all faithful shepherds of the Master's flock:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary Magdalen, anointer of the Lord's feet;
Luke the physician;
Francis who kissed the leper;
Florence Nightingale;
Albert Schweitzer;
all who brought to the sick and suffering the hands of healing:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Louis, king of France;
Margaret, queen of Scotland;
Gandhi the mahatma, reproach to the churches;
Dag Hammarskjold the bureaucrat;
all who made governance an act of faith:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Peter of the keys, denier of the Lord;
Ambrose of Milan, who answered the Church's summons;
Hilda, abbess at Whitby;
Robert Grosseteste, bishop of Lincoln, protector of the Jews;
Jean-Baptiste Vianney, cure d' Ars,
patient hearer of catalogues of sins;
all faithful shepherds of the Master's flock:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary Magdalen, anointer of the Lord's feet;
Luke the physician;
Francis who kissed the leper;
Florence Nightingale;
Albert Schweitzer;
all who brought to the sick and suffering the hands of healing:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
Yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones who made the proclaiming of God's love a work of art:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Pierluigi da Palestrina;
John Merbecke;
Johann Sebastian Bach;
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;
Benjamin Britten;
Duke Ellington;
all who sang the Creator's praises in the language of the soul:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
David and the Psalmists;
Caedmon;
John Milton, sketcher of Paradise;
William Blake, builder of Jerusalem;
John Mason Neale, preserver of the past;
all poets of the celestial vision:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Zaccheus the tree-climber;
Brother Lawrence;
Therese of Lisieux, the little flower;
Andrew of Glasshampton;
all cultivators of holy simplicity:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Pierluigi da Palestrina;
John Merbecke;
Johann Sebastian Bach;
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;
Benjamin Britten;
Duke Ellington;
all who sang the Creator's praises in the language of the soul:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
David and the Psalmists;
Caedmon;
John Milton, sketcher of Paradise;
William Blake, builder of Jerusalem;
John Mason Neale, preserver of the past;
all poets of the celestial vision:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Zaccheus the tree-climber;
Brother Lawrence;
Therese of Lisieux, the little flower;
Andrew of Glasshampton;
all cultivators of holy simplicity:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones haunted by the justice and mercy of God:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Amos of Tekoa, who held up the plumbline;
John Wycliffe, who brought the Scripture to the common folk;
John Hus and Menno Simons, generals in the Lamb's war;
Martin Luther, who could do no other;
George Fox, foe of steeple-houses;
all who kept the Church ever-reforming:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Paul the apostle, transfixed by noonday light;
Augustine of Hippo, God's city planner;
Thomas Aquinas and John Calvin, architects of the divine;
Charles Williams, teacher of coinherence;
Karl Barth, knower of the unknowable;
all who saw God at work and wrote down what they saw:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
John, the seer of Patmos;
Anthony of the desert;
Julian, the anchoress of Norwich;
Hildegarde, the sybil of the Rhine;
Meister Eckardt;
Bernadette of Lourdes;
all who were called to see the Master's face:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Joachim of Fiora, prophet of the new age;
Johnny Appleseed, mad planter of Eden;
Sojourner Truth, pilgrim of justice;
Benedict Joseph Labre, priest and panhandler;
all whose love for God was beyond containment:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Amos of Tekoa, who held up the plumbline;
John Wycliffe, who brought the Scripture to the common folk;
John Hus and Menno Simons, generals in the Lamb's war;
Martin Luther, who could do no other;
George Fox, foe of steeple-houses;
all who kept the Church ever-reforming:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Paul the apostle, transfixed by noonday light;
Augustine of Hippo, God's city planner;
Thomas Aquinas and John Calvin, architects of the divine;
Charles Williams, teacher of coinherence;
Karl Barth, knower of the unknowable;
all who saw God at work and wrote down what they saw:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
John, the seer of Patmos;
Anthony of the desert;
Julian, the anchoress of Norwich;
Hildegarde, the sybil of the Rhine;
Meister Eckardt;
Bernadette of Lourdes;
all who were called to see the Master's face:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Joachim of Fiora, prophet of the new age;
Johnny Appleseed, mad planter of Eden;
Sojourner Truth, pilgrim of justice;
Benedict Joseph Labre, priest and panhandler;
all whose love for God was beyond containment:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
The golden evening brightens in the west;
Soon, soon to faithful warriors cometh rest;
Sweet is the calm of paradise the blest.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones who died in witness to the Christ:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Stephen the deacon, the first martyr, stoned in Jerusalem:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Justin, Ignatius and Polycarp, who refused the incense to Caesar:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Perpetua and Felicity, torn by beasts in the arena at Carthage:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Thomas Cranmer, Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley,
burned in Oxford:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Maximilian Kolbe and Edith Stein, put to death at Auschwitz:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
James Reeb, Jonathan Daniels, Michael Schwerner,
Medgar Evers, Viola Liuzzo, shot in the South:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Martin Luther King, shot in Memphis:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Janani Luwum, shot in Kampala:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Oscar Romero, shot in San Salvador:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Martyrs of Rome, of Lyons, of Japan, of Eastern Equatorial
Africa, of Uganda, of Melanesia,
martyrs of everywhere:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Stephen the deacon, the first martyr, stoned in Jerusalem:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Justin, Ignatius and Polycarp, who refused the incense to Caesar:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Perpetua and Felicity, torn by beasts in the arena at Carthage:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Thomas Cranmer, Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley,
burned in Oxford:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Maximilian Kolbe and Edith Stein, put to death at Auschwitz:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
James Reeb, Jonathan Daniels, Michael Schwerner,
Medgar Evers, Viola Liuzzo, shot in the South:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Martin Luther King, shot in Memphis:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Janani Luwum, shot in Kampala:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Oscar Romero, shot in San Salvador:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Martyrs of Rome, of Lyons, of Japan, of Eastern Equatorial
Africa, of Uganda, of Melanesia,
martyrs of everywhere:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
But lo! there breaks a yet more glorious day;
The saints triumphant rise in bright array;
The King of Glory passes on his way.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Holy ones of every time and place:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Glorious company of heaven:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
All climbers of the ladder of Paradise:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
All runners of the celestial race:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Glorious company of heaven:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
All climbers of the ladder of Paradise:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
All runners of the celestial race:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
[The people may call out saints' names]
Great cloud of witnesses:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, chief of the saints:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, yes-sayer to God:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, unmarried mother:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, gate of heaven and ark of the covenant:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, yes-sayer to God:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, unmarried mother:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Mary most holy, gate of heaven and ark of the covenant:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,
Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
Singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia, alleluia!
Jesus our liberator, creator of all:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, redeemer of all:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, sanctifier of all:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, the alpha and the omega, the beginning and
the end:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, redeemer of all:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, sanctifier of all:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
Jesus our liberator, the alpha and the omega, the beginning and
the end:
STAND HERE BESIDE US!
++++
God of love we pray and remember and speak these names and any of those we would like to add in the course of this time of remembrance.
We pray for :
Festo Kivengere
May there be peace in Africa and Uganda
Nelson Mandela
May there continue to be an end to apartheid in places where there is ethnic division and hatred.
Anne Frank
We pray and remember those who have died in the Holocaust and pray that these actions may never happen again.
Raoul Wallenberg
We remember and pray for all who are rescuers from oppression and danger of any kind and especially those who saved our brothers and sisters during the Holocaust.
Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Wilberforce, John Newton, Alex Haley, ROOTS
We pray and remember all those who were slaves, abolitionists, those who established the Underground Railroad, and those who told the stories of slavery.
Oskar Schindler
We continue to pray for risk takers to save people from genocide, and those who seek to remind us of ethnic cleansing and religious imprisonment and the need to always remember.
Elie Wiesel,The Albanian Muslims who Saved the Jews in World War II
May we always remember and never forget.
Johnathan Myrick Daniels
We lift up all those who fought for the civil and voting rights for African Americans and especially those who lost their lives in seeking liberty, and justice for all.
Florence Li Tim Oi
We pray and give thanks for all women who answered the call to ministry in their churches and may we remember and support those who continue to struggle with God's call in oppressive religious bodies.
Harvey Milk
We pray for all who in the LGBT community who have lost their lives not only in the struggle for human rights but in service to the larger community.
Mahatma Gandhi
We pray and gift thanks for all who have practiced and modeled peaceful non violent protest and civil disobedience.
Oscar Romero
We pray for all who fought for the rights of people in Latin American Countries and who modeled the preferential option for the poor and liberation theology.
Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin
We give thanks and pray for all members of the Abrahamic household that we may continue to seek to be united in the bonds of peace and mercy.
Those who walked Trail of Tears, Black Elk, Chief Seattle, The Dakota 38
We pray and remember all Native Americans who were taken from their lands, denied the provisions of the treaties, and who continue to struggle at Standing Rock.
Madame C.J. Walker
We pray and give thanks for bold African American women who were trailblazers in business, religion, politics, and everywhere.
Margaret Sanger
We pray and give thanks for women and men who helped to give women access to health care and reproductive freedom.
The Orlando 49
We pray and remember all who perished in Pulse and speak their names*
Stonewall
We pray and remember those who were early fighters seeking LGBT rights and the courage to live authentically.
Ryan White
We pray and remember all who have died from A.I.D.S. and those who continue to struggle.
Matthew Shepard
We pray and remember all LGBTQ youth who have died at the hands of bullies and who have been victims of hate crimes.
Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Humayun Khan
We pray and remember all Muslims in this country who exemplified what it means to follow their faith and blaze trails for people to follow in the ways of justice, liberty, and peace. We pray that we may learn tolerance and respect for one another.
Cesar Chavez
We pray and give thanks for all who have helped to keep our farm workers safe and make our food safe from pesticides.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Lee Bates, Marie Curie, Seneca Falls Conference.
We pray and give thanks for all who were trail blazers for women's rights and sought the right to vote and have full participation in their lives with men.
Christine Jorgenson, Billy Tipton, Renee Richards
We pray and remember our Trans brothers and sisters who valiantly lived out their truth. May we continue to educate all people about gender identity and support our trans community who need us.
Dorothy Day and Jane Addams
We pray for all who have made a difference in the lives of the poor, marginalized, women, children and all who are needy.
Your heroes of social justice.
May we name them before you now.
*We speak the names of those who have died by any kind of violence as we remember and pray these our family members in our hearts:
We pray for :
Festo Kivengere
May there be peace in Africa and Uganda
Nelson Mandela
May there continue to be an end to apartheid in places where there is ethnic division and hatred.
Anne Frank
We pray and remember those who have died in the Holocaust and pray that these actions may never happen again.
Raoul Wallenberg
We remember and pray for all who are rescuers from oppression and danger of any kind and especially those who saved our brothers and sisters during the Holocaust.
Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Wilberforce, John Newton, Alex Haley, ROOTS
We pray and remember all those who were slaves, abolitionists, those who established the Underground Railroad, and those who told the stories of slavery.
Oskar Schindler
We continue to pray for risk takers to save people from genocide, and those who seek to remind us of ethnic cleansing and religious imprisonment and the need to always remember.
Elie Wiesel,The Albanian Muslims who Saved the Jews in World War II
May we always remember and never forget.
Johnathan Myrick Daniels
We lift up all those who fought for the civil and voting rights for African Americans and especially those who lost their lives in seeking liberty, and justice for all.
Florence Li Tim Oi
We pray and give thanks for all women who answered the call to ministry in their churches and may we remember and support those who continue to struggle with God's call in oppressive religious bodies.
Harvey Milk
We pray for all who in the LGBT community who have lost their lives not only in the struggle for human rights but in service to the larger community.
Mahatma Gandhi
We pray and gift thanks for all who have practiced and modeled peaceful non violent protest and civil disobedience.
Oscar Romero
We pray for all who fought for the rights of people in Latin American Countries and who modeled the preferential option for the poor and liberation theology.
Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin
We give thanks and pray for all members of the Abrahamic household that we may continue to seek to be united in the bonds of peace and mercy.
Those who walked Trail of Tears, Black Elk, Chief Seattle, The Dakota 38
We pray and remember all Native Americans who were taken from their lands, denied the provisions of the treaties, and who continue to struggle at Standing Rock.
Madame C.J. Walker
We pray and give thanks for bold African American women who were trailblazers in business, religion, politics, and everywhere.
Margaret Sanger
We pray and give thanks for women and men who helped to give women access to health care and reproductive freedom.
The Orlando 49
We pray and remember all who perished in Pulse and speak their names*
Stonewall
We pray and remember those who were early fighters seeking LGBT rights and the courage to live authentically.
Ryan White
We pray and remember all who have died from A.I.D.S. and those who continue to struggle.
Matthew Shepard
We pray and remember all LGBTQ youth who have died at the hands of bullies and who have been victims of hate crimes.
Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Humayun Khan
We pray and remember all Muslims in this country who exemplified what it means to follow their faith and blaze trails for people to follow in the ways of justice, liberty, and peace. We pray that we may learn tolerance and respect for one another.
Cesar Chavez
We pray and give thanks for all who have helped to keep our farm workers safe and make our food safe from pesticides.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Lee Bates, Marie Curie, Seneca Falls Conference.
We pray and give thanks for all who were trail blazers for women's rights and sought the right to vote and have full participation in their lives with men.
Christine Jorgenson, Billy Tipton, Renee Richards
We pray and remember our Trans brothers and sisters who valiantly lived out their truth. May we continue to educate all people about gender identity and support our trans community who need us.
Dorothy Day and Jane Addams
We pray for all who have made a difference in the lives of the poor, marginalized, women, children and all who are needy.
Your heroes of social justice.
May we name them before you now.
*We speak the names of those who have died by any kind of violence as we remember and pray these our family members in our hearts:
We light out candles in loving memory of all your children who have lost their lives to any kind of violence remembering especially:
Pittsburgh
Kentucky
Our towns and cities
The many places around the world
++++
A Bonus Litany and prayers
There is no time like the present to pray and give thanks for our family members who have stood firm on the side of social justice both living and departed. This litany is based on the Litany of Saints it is a work in progress.
Lord, have mercy on us.
CHRIST, have mercy on us.
LORD, have mercy on us.
CHRIST, hear us.
CHRIST, graciously hear us.
GOD, THE FATHER OF HEAVEN, have mercy on us.
GOD THE SON, REDEEMER OF THE WORLD, have mercy on us.
GOD THE HOLY GHOST, have mercy on us.
HOLY TRINITY, ONE GOD, have mercy on us.
HOLY MARY, pray for us.
HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, pray for us.
HOLY VIRGIN OF VIRGINS, pray for us.
ST. MICHAEL, pray for us.
ST. GABRIEL, pray for us.
ST. RAPHAEL, pray for us.
ALL HOLY ANGELS AND ARCHANGELS, pray for us.
ALL HOLY ORDERS OF BLESSED SPIRITS, pray for us.
ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, pray for us. ST. JOSEPH, pray for us.
ALL HOLY PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS, pray for us.
ST. PETER, pray for us.
ST. PAUL, pray for us
After the names are spoken aloud our response is this :
"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."
Festo Kivengere
Nelson Mandela
Malala
Anne Frank
Raoul Wallenberg
Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Wilberforce, John Newton, Alex Haley, ROOTS
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Oskar Schindler
Elie Wiesel. The Albanian Muslims who Saved the Jews in World War II
Johnathan Myrick Daniels
James Chaney
Andrew Goodman
Michael Schwerner
Martin Luther King Jr.
Sacheen Littlefeather
St. Theresa of Calcutta
Fr. Damian of Molokai
The Martyrs of Japan
The Martyrs of Memphis
The Martyrs of Uganda
The Martyrs of lynching in our country past and present
The Dakota 38
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Our Japanese family members who were sent to internment camps
Our family members who died in the Nazi Concentration camps
Our family members who practice civil disobedience and peaceful-non violent protest
John Lewis
Clara Barton
Florence Nightingale
Thich Nhat Hanh
All Transgender Martyrs who have been murdered for living authentically.
Black Elk
Chief Seattle
Florence Li Tim Oi
The Dalai Lama
Leonart Pelletier
Harvey Milk
Mahatma Gandhi
Oscar Romero
Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin
Our indigenous family members who walked Trail of Tears
The Righteous Gentiles
Madame C.J. Walker
Margaret Sanger
Gabby Giffords
Francis Perkins
All God's children who have died and survived Gun Violence
The Charleston 9
The Orlando 49
The Martyrs of Stonewall
Ryan White
Matthew Shepard
Malcolm X, Mohammed Ali, Salam Al Maryati,
Cesar Chavez
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Katherine Lee Bates, Marie Curie, The Philadelphia 11, Barbara Harris, Katharine Jefferts Schori
Seneca Falls Conference.
Christine Jorgenson, Billy Tipton, Renee Richards
Sally Ride, Billy Jean King, Sheila Kuehl,
Your heroes of social justice.
Triangle Shirt Factory Fire Victims.
Dorothy Day
Jane Addams
Addie Mae Collins
Cynthia Wesley
Carol Roberson
Denise McNair
Indira Gandhi
Benazir Bhutto
Those who have spoken and speak with prophetic voices.
We name before God the names of others who are on your hearts this day________________
"IF YOU SPEAK MY NAME, I WILL LIVE FOREVER."
We add these prayers this day!
As we continue to pray let us pray the words of peace of St. Francis of Assisi
We add these prayers this day!
As we continue to pray let us pray the words of peace of St. Francis of Assisi
A Prayer attributed to St. Francis
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is
hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where
there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where
there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where
there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to
be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is
in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we
are born to eternal life. Amen.
Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is
hatred, let us sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where
there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where
there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where
there is sadness, joy. Grant that we may not so much seek to
be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is
in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we
are born to eternal life. Amen.
Now let's take time to mediate on what Martin Luther King Jr. and all those who have fought for justice throughout the world. Who are your favorite protesters?
Let us pray in the Key of Jesus and Ring the Bells of El Camino Real (King's Highway)for those who fought for justice, peace, and equality. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Let us pray in the Key of Jesus and Ring the Bells of El Camino Real (King's Highway)for those who fought for justice, peace, and equality. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Martin Luther King Jr. and his witness to all of our family members who were longing for justice in this their distant home and land that we take for granted. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Mahatma Gandhi who taught us how to protest non-violently Help us to follow Your and His Model and use our words to make peace and cry out for the voiceless.
We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for all who gave their lives in the Stonewall riots to help pave the way for LGBTQ rights and the rights of those who are afraid to live authentically. May we see God in each of us who are in the LGBTQ community, who are family, allies, and friends , be enfolded into the mainstream community with out fear and labeling. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Elizabeth Cady Stanton and all of our sisters who fought for the rights of women so that they would no longer be property but full and perfect members of society and examples of citizenry to their sons and daughters. We pray that all of our sisters may have full protection and rights securely given them. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Mahatma Gandhi who taught us how to protest non-violently Help us to follow Your and His Model and use our words to make peace and cry out for the voiceless.
We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for all who gave their lives in the Stonewall riots to help pave the way for LGBTQ rights and the rights of those who are afraid to live authentically. May we see God in each of us who are in the LGBTQ community, who are family, allies, and friends , be enfolded into the mainstream community with out fear and labeling. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Elizabeth Cady Stanton and all of our sisters who fought for the rights of women so that they would no longer be property but full and perfect members of society and examples of citizenry to their sons and daughters. We pray that all of our sisters may have full protection and rights securely given them. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for all of our family members who were interned in the Japanese internment camps at Manzanar and Santa Anita. We pray for their contributions to our society and ask for their forgiveness for the wrongs we may have done out of fear and mistrust. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for the witness of all our Native and Indigenous Martyrs who were here in their homelands of origin in this country We pray for forgiveness for the wrongs we have done to them and remember the trail of tears that took them away from places they call home and became refugees in strange and distant lands. We remember this night all of our family members who are refugees. We pray that the y may one day return home as You , Mary, and Joseph left Egypt for Nazareth. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Malala and all children who speak truth to power. We pray for all our children that they may be protected from harm. May all of our youth look to Malala for hope and a role model of what one child can do. We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for Cesar Chavez and all those who fought for the farm worker and for the rights and protection of those who put food on our tables We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for those who have died in the struggle for justice, equality, inclusion, and universal human rights.We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for all the many witnesses that we have not named but you know them all may we remember them now_____________________________We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
Jesus we pray and give thanks for this night especially for ________________________
We pray this in the Key of Jesus! Ring out the Bells of Justice for all of our family members now.
+++++
Tonight I ask us all to take the Matthew 25 Pledge again and again until poverty at home and abroad is vanquished. Here is the pledge.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God, we pray this night for all who are houseless. Give us courage to find ways to help our family members in times of need and varieties of shelter to meet their needs.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God, we pray for all who are food insecure and that we may seek ways to collaborate with food banks, SNAP, and Meals on Wheels programs.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God, we pray for education and job training programs for our family members who are older and disabled.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God, we pray for all who have been caregivers, cancer patients where income is a problem and has led them into poverty through no fault of their own.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God, we pray for all who are mentally ill and cannot find food, clothing, shelter and are being banished from city streets and buildings just by being who they are.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
God ,we pray for all who are living in domestic poverty of all kinds.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
For whom and what shall we pray____________
We pray this day for everyone who traveled to any Detention Center, Stood up against Gun Violence,and _______________.
We continue to pray for continued activism in the areas of Criminal Justice Reform, Peace Building, and Domestic Poverty.
We lift up these our prayers in Jesus Holy Name.
I pledge to protect and defend vulnerable people in the name of Jesus.
Good Night Beloved Ones. May peace be upon you all this night and always and know that you are loved.
Something to ponder from The Northumbria Community:
This week’s Rule reflection
We trust in God, living in the paradox of being purposefully lost, deliberately uncertain, and resolutely confused
Sending love, prayers, hugs, and blessings!
Sara
Resources:
BCP-Online
BCP-Online
A New Zealand Prayer Book
Satucket Lectionary
Satucket Lectionary
Metis Aboriginal Ministries
Walk With Me On Our Journey
Enriching Our Worship 1
Prayers of Power
All other sources as noted
Enriching Our Worship 1
Prayers of Power
All other sources as noted
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