Community Prayer for Peace

A Community Prayer for Peace

May 29, 2020 (Transcript from recording)

Thank you to everyone who is joining us today. It has been a rough couple days for a community already taxed by a global pandemic. We understand the sadness and disappointment our community may be experiencing due to the cancellation of today’s all-school celebration parade, but many of our community members are hurting right now, as they’ve been directly impacted by the events that have unfolded this week. As people of faith, we felt it was more appropriate to gather together in prayer. We are working to reschedule today’s event, with more information shared later today. 

We now begin with prayer….
Principal Mary Yamoah

Opening Prayer

+Sign of the Cross. God of justice, In your wisdom you create all people in your image, without exception. Through your goodness, open our eyes to see the dignity, beauty, and worth of every human being. Open our minds to understand that all your children are brothers and sisters in the same human family. Open our hearts to repent of racist attitudes, behaviors, and speech which demean others. Open our ears to hear the cries of those wounded by racial discrimination, and their passionate appeals for change. Strengthen our resolve to make amends for past injustices and to right the wrongs of history. And fill us with courage that we might seek to heal wounds, build bridges, forgive and be forgiven, and establish peace and equality for all in our communities. In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Reading from Scripture

Isaiah 32: 15-18

In those days: The spirit from on high Will be poured out on us. Then will the desert become an orchard And the orchard regarded as a forest. Right will dwell in the desert And justice abide in the orchard. Justice will bring about peace; Right will produce calm and security. My people will live in a peaceful country, In secure dwellings and quiet resting places.

The Word of the Lord

All:  Thanks be to God

Petitions:

In hope that the arc of history bends toward justice and puts an end to violence, we lift up our prayers for healing, saying: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For the Church, that its prophetic voice may proclaim to all the challenge to break the hopeless cycles of poverty, ignorance, prejudice, and despair which degrade the sacred dignity of humankind, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For our country, that we might celebrate our diversity and the distinctive contributions of every fiber of our cultural fabric, we pray: 

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For wise and decisive action on the part of local and national leaders, that racism and violence be eradicated from our society, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For our faith communities, that they may not succumb to indifference or accept the status quo, but press on for fundamental change, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For those who have lost lives, security, and property. May their wounds be healed. May they know the care, support and protection of others so they may be freed from fear and live in peace and safety.  We pray…

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For the victims of discrimination, may they be filled with hope for a more just future, healing from wounds received, courage to advocate for change and for peace, and the grace to overcome hated with love, we pray: 

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For those who work for justice, that they may be sustained in hope, empowered with courage, and filled with the grace to persevere in love, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For our local and national leaders, first responders including firefighters, National Guard, police officers, EMS workers, and all those on the front lines, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For our parents and teachers who have done the hard work of teaching and guiding our children through such a tumultuous year, we pray:

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For our students, may they continue to seek out opportunities to serve those in need and find comfort knowing they are loved by God and our Carondelet community of Saints.

ALL: Bind us together, O God of love. 

For all other intercessions, we pray               

ALL Bind us together, O God of love. 

Closing Prayer

Jesus our brother, You revealed God through your wise words and loving deeds, and we encounter you still today in the faces of those whom society has pushed to the margins. Guide us, through the love you revealed, to establish the justice you proclaimed, that all peoples might dwell in harmony and peace, united by that one love that binds us to each other, and to you. Amen.

Closing Song: Servant Song