Prayer For Us All As We Cope With The Tsunami
Joanne Giannino
Ministerial Intern, First Universalist Society in Franklin
January 2, 2005
O God,
Just last week we gathered in this chapel
To help birth your Love and Peace on earth
To bring Christ to life in each of us
To celebrate the miracle of Life born in each of us and through us as each is
born
Today we gather on the first Sunday of our new year
Our hearts are torn between the delight of anticipation of possibilities
And the burdens of sorrow that never seem to leave our lives
For even on Christmas day some of us grieved for loved ones missed
Others were losing relatives and friends,
Others ill or caring for the ill
And just on Sunday thousands were lost O God, thousands
In a great earthquake, our earth and its sea swallowing them, crushing and maiming
O God, our hearts break for those left behind
Amidst holiday family vacations and full moon rituals bathing in the sea
O God, we are sick, we are wounded with grief for those lost
Far from home and others who have lost their homes, livelihood, hope.
O Holy One, the ways of earth are strange and uneven
And we are at a loss to explain.how to make sense?
War and violence, hunger and poverty, man-made tragedies we create in ignorance
But disasters such as this one Dear One seem to at least momentarily bring us
together
As one human family we rush to the aid of our sisters and brothers
Sending money, blankets, food, clean water, shelter
Would it be that we maintain such love in action for each other
Would it be that we remember the preciousness of the gift of life
And how quickly it can be taken away
By a stray bullet, a measured missile
A tsunami, a hurricane
And naturally by the passing of time and the death that will come to each of
us.
Holy one of Blessing,
Bring us hope and strength, may our burdens lessen as we rely on each other
Teach us to love each other daily
Grant us compassion and tenderness
To do the work of love, the true work of Christmas that is required of us throughout
the year
As our Brother, Howard Thurman taught us:
To find the lost,
to heal the broken,
to feed the hungry,
to release the prisoner,
to rebuild the nations,
to bring peace among the brothers,
to make music in the heart.
For all of these we pray and put our hands to the task.
Amen.
>>Liturgical Resources for
Reflection on the Indian Ocean Tsunami
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