Prayers
Pastoral Prayer at the beginning of a war
Sean Parker Dennison
Spirit of Life, of Justice and of Compassion,
We are here.
We have brought our hands and eyes and hearts and bodies to this
place
to face together the reality of war.
We've come with many feelings.
Some of us feel confused and helpless.
Some of us are enraged and angry.
Some of us feel a deep sadness, a well of grief.
Some of us feel a determined hope that even war can be used
in the service of good.
We are here, together, aware that we have arrived from a variety
of places,
with a diversity of opinions about the events that have drawn us
together.
Still, we are here together, to affirm those things we know are
true:
That each life is precious and should be protected from harm.
That we are called to live our lives in the service of good,
and to search for that good with our whole hearts and minds.
That times of war are times of suffering and we must do all we can
to limit and alleviate that suffering.
We are here together, mindful of the importance of this community,
of the
need for our voice, our vision, and our example of diversity lived
out with love.
We are here to hold in our hearts and prayers, those men and women
that, in
conscientious service to our nation, may soon be in harm's way.
We are here to reaffirm our commitment to be people who do not
turn away
from the realities before us, nor ignore the voice of conscience
and slip
into the despair of inaction, but put our faith to work for the
common good.
As we move into a time of silence and reflection, let us remember
all that
we cherish and all that brings us hope, let us hold fast to our
vision of a
world of justice and peace, and most of all, let us be grateful
to be here
together, creating a community where differences need not be a cause
for
fear, but for celebration.
Blessed be. Ashé. And Amen.
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