Posts Tagged ‘peace’

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Increasing Love

March 2, 2017

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  2 Peter 1:5-8

O Lord, guide our leaders — and us as citizens — that we may pursue goodness, knowledge, self-control, godliness, and kindness in our political lives and in our communities.   Help us reach out to our neighbors, breaking down the walls of “us” and “them”.  Calm our anger and fears. Steer us from factions and petty disputes. Teach us to love. Help us live by your Spirit and find peace and prosperity together.  (Galatians 5:19-26).

Amen

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Why Jesus?

January 12, 2016

“… to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the paths of peace.” Matt. 1:79

“The light shines in the darkness but the darkness has not understood.”  John 1:5

The light shines in the darkness. But the darkness feels safe, the shadows fascinate, and the drama of conflict holds our attention captive.  Free us O Lord and lead us to peace.

Amen.

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Heal Our Hates O Lord

June 24, 2015

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21

Lord, thank you for the love, forgiveness, and mercy shown by the survivors at Emanuel A.M.E. Church and for the witness they have given in the face of hate. Thank you for the politicians who departed from the usual patterns of division and denial to speak up and out in support of their brothers and sisters in faith.

As James Russell Lowell, observed in 1845*,

To us all, to every nation comes the moment to decide,
in the strife of truth with falsehood, for the good or evil side;

Let us choose good O Lord.

[N]ew occasions teach new duties, time makes ancient good uncouth;  they must upward still and onward, who would keep abreast of truth.

Let us move forward O Lord, guided by your grace.  Help us to learn new ways.

Heal our hates O Lord. Help us live in peace with one another (Romans 12:18).

Amen.

* Quotes from poem printed as the hymn, “To Us All, to Every Nation”,  v. 1 and 2, Chalice Hymnal #634.

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Prayers For Peace

September 11, 2014

O God, you will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are fixed on you . . . Isaiah 26:3

On this 13th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center, we pray for an end to hate and violence throughout our world.  We remember and pray for those who died in the attacks, that they might be at peace with you. We pray for their families and friends, that in their grieving they may find the peace which transcends all understanding. [Php.4:7] And we pray for all who remain in our unstable and violent world, that we may find new ways of living together.

We pray for peace O God.

O God, our creator, 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 guide us as we work through our struggle and confusion. [#3]*

We pray for peace O God.

O Lord you have commanded us to love our enemies:  Lead them and us from prejudice to truth; deliver them and us from hatred, cruelty, and revenge; and in your good time enable us all to stand reconciled before you. [#6]

We pray for peace O God.

Give us the grace seriously to lay to heart the great dangers we are in by our unhappy divisions; take away all hatred and prejudice, hurt and anger, and whatever else may hinder us from peaceful union and concord. Help us to seek the holy bonds of truth and peace, of compassion and charity. [#14]

We pray for peace O God.

Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom all nations and people work in harmony, guide us in love. [#3, 4]  Lead us from dissension, factions and selfish ambitions to a world abundant in  the fruits of your Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  [Galatians 5:19-26]  Guide all the nations, — and each of us as individuals in our interactions with family, neighbors, and community, —  into the ways of justice and truth, peace and love.  [5]

Grant us peace O God.

 

* Adapted in part from The Book of Common Prayer, “Prayers and Thanksgivings”,  No.s 3 -6, 14.

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Civility In the New Year

January 20, 2011

But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  Do not lie to each other . . . Colossians 3:8-9

At the start of a new year we begin with shots in Tuscon bringing grief, recriminations, calls for reconciliation, and bewilderment.

Lord, help us to be a better people than we are.

Help us to seek wisdom over partisan power, justice over greed, forgiveness over hate.  Help us to be honest with ourselves and with others, both as to what we think we know and what we do not.  Comfort all who grieve for the victims of violence.  And as we mourn, fill us also with compassion for those whose mental illness goes untreated, those who cannot find work, those who struggle to find food and shelter, and those who only fear the future.  Turn us from fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy.  Turn us towards kindness, patience, self-control, and the desire to live together in peace. (Galatians 5:19-23).  Equip us to find new ways of living together and new ways of sharing and service.

Show us your ways, O Lord, teach us your paths; guide us in your truth and teach us, for you are God our Savior and our hope is in you all day long. Ps. 25:4-5

We can be a better people than we have been.  Help us to change O Lord.

Amen

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Charity and Truth -4

October 11, 2009

[Note: This is the final prayer in a series that reflects and quotes from the Encyclical Letter Caritas In Veritate given by Pope Benedict XVI on June 29, 2009.  Quotes from the letter are identified by paragraph number.]

And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4:21

Thank you Lord, for encouragement in the form of a Nobel prize.  Encouragement for a new vision for our country — one of a world leader that respects others, seeks to rebuild relationships of trust, accepts accountability, opens new dialogues, and believes that all countries may some day live in peace.  Thank you for a president with the courage to dream and to speak out.  Thank you for his patience, calm demeanor, willingness to persevere and to forgive, and his focus on future generations.

Your love, is your “promise and our hope.” Encycl. Ltr, par. 1. We are called to share that gift, to acknowledge our interdependence, to seek wisdom, to care for and about each other, and to work to establish a true sense of community with other citizens and other peoples.  Encycl. Ltr  16-20.    As we work through our current global economic and humanitarian crisis, we acknowledge that

[t]he different aspects of the crisis, its solutions, and any new development that the future may bring, are increasingly interconnected, they imply one another, they require new efforts of holistic understanding and a new humanistic synthesis. The complexity and gravity of the present economic situation rightly cause us concern, but we must adopt a realistic attitude as we take up with confidence and hope the new responsibilities to which we are called by the prospect of a world in need of profound cultural renewal, a world that needs to rediscover fundamental values on which to build a better future. The current crisis obliges us to re-plan our journey, to set ourselves new rules and to discover new forms of commitment, to build on positive experiences and to reject negative ones.  Encycl. Ltr. par. 21.

Let us heed your call for change O Lord. Harden not our hearts. Do not let the voices of doubt, denial, and denigration silence those who are seeking and working to build a better world.  Help the politics of hope and compassion overcome those of fear and domination.  Give us  peace in our lifetimes, O Lord.

Amen

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Love As The Path To Peace

May 9, 2009

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. –1 Peter 4:8

Lord, as we rebuild our country and our economy, help us to do so with compassion.  As we allocate resources, harden not our hearts. Let us find ways to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, care for the mentally ill, and treat the drug addicted.  Let us invest more in prevention than in prisons, rebuild our cities with affordable housing, and share resources through community gardens and other programs that help those who are without meet their basic needs. Help us to see that safety is not found in separating from others but in reaching out and building community. Let us not judge, but seek to live in harmony with each other, following the words of your apostle Paul (Romans 12:16).  Help us to recognize our common humanity, preserve human dignity, and care for one another, recognizing that all we have is dependent on your grace.

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.

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Planting The Seeds Of Peace

May 3, 2009

Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness. James 3:18

Lord, as we work through the complex issues of our time, let us sow in peace.  Help us avoid the weeds and thorns of derision, taunts, denial, sales pitches, propaganda, posturing, and wishful thinking that surround us.

Help us to listen.

Encourage us to explore and seek new information, ideas, and perspectives.

Help us to learn from each other – asking questions, inviting new input, sharing experiences.

Help us to face the reality we have before us, and accept the promise that we can change, so that we might build a better country and world: one where we act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you our God. (Micah 6:8)

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen.

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Pursuing Peace

April 26, 2009

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. Ps. 34:14

Lord, help us create more peace in our world — peace abroad, peace in our country, peace in our cities, peace in our families, peace within.

Help us to focus less on our individual rights and desires and more on our responsibilities to each other.

Help us to understand the complex systems that shape our lives, so that we might fight injustice at its roots, and not just fight over its effects.

Help us to be open to the pain and suffering around us, so that we might seek the common good as we move into the future.

Help us to forgive ourselves and others for both what was done and left undone in the past, while keeping in mind that those who do not remember or who refuse to consider the past are condemned to repeat it.

Help us to recognize and be grateful for the many gifts you have given, and to see the reflection of your image in those around us.

Help us to sort through the waves of information, emotion, and demands that sap our time and energy, so that we might focus on the path you would have us follow.

Help us to trust in you, and respond, when we hear your call to love others as you have loved us. (John 15:20)

Help us to find within ourselves, and share, the gift of peace you have given. (John 14:27).

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen

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