Litany for Ukraine

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As Russia continues its unprovoked and evil invasion of Ukraine, we pray to the Lord for our siblings there.
This prayer is intended to be prayed aloud in congregations or gatherings of any size, with attribution.

God, we are heartbroken for our Ukrainian siblings
For all who are suffering,
For all who are displaced,
For all who are fighting,
For all who are dying,
For all who are fearful,
For all who are resolute, 
For all who feel hopeless.

We are sad and sick at heart
That war has once again been waged on innocents, on anyone.
We lament and mourn this tragedy
And commit to lending our strength and love to those in the fight,
Even as we ask for all bloodshed to cease.
As Christ has shamed violence, so do we.

We ask for a quick resolution to this war and an end to this invasion.
We ask for peace and safety for all Ukrainians.
We ask for wise and bold leaders who are clever, creative, and committed to the good of all.
We ask for peace on the European continent.
We ask for, and enact with our bodies, a world where war and aggression are never an option.
We ask for true justice and peace to reign over all the earth.

Thwart the bloodthirsty and power-hungry, God (1).
Deny the greedy.
Lay waste to the plans of the wicked.
Confuse the minds of evil-doers.

Somehow, we know we must love Ukraine’s enemy with them (2).
Somehow, we must tap into the compassion of God for these invaders.
Somehow, we know we must embody the peace and forgiveness of Christ (3).
Somehow, we must not let evil win the day. Help us.

Oh God, war brings us to the very ends our ourselves -
The edges of our own humanity;
It takes us so far that we have no choice but to remember our divinity, our Imago Dei,
If we are to continue in Love at all.
Christ left his peace with us (John 14:27),
Now let humanity take hold of it.

Amen

  1. Psalm 57:3

  2. Matthew 5:44

  3. John 20:22,23



Advent 2 (Year C, 2021): Anger and Peace

The bulk of my work can be accessed via Patreon
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Thanks for reading and subscribing.
You can find archived litanies here, and purchase my book here.
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If you missed my introduction to this Advent litany series, please go back and read the previous post.

The second stage of the grief process, as observed and synthesized by Dr. Elizabeth Kubler Ross and Dr. David Kessler, is anger. I say it’s “second” but that doesn’t mean it always appears for everyone in some perfect order. My own experience has taught me that grief is cyclical, and I often find myself returning to various phases for deeper work. And certainly moving through phases of anger has been a significant part of my own journey.

We stay in each phase as long as it takes, which is an unpredictable length of time because grief is an unruly process.

I’m leaning into contradictions and paradox. Into what sometimes feels like impossibility! Like this: in a world of anger, violence, injustice, suffering, we are continually advised by the Christ to be at peace, to create peace, and to not be fearful. How on earth? I can see how in heaven, but how on earth? Luke writes that, going along with God’s promise, “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us.”

In the meantime we have plenty to be angry about. Neither inner or societal peace are going to come about consistently without some work on our part - some training and continual embracing of the Peace of Christ, even in light of our righteous anger about unjust systems and trauma.

Advent invites us to reconcile the irreconcilable, and to learn to be comfortable with that dissonance and keep faith in spite of it. Advent offers us a peek behind the veil: what are we looking at? Now, what are we looking FOR?


God, we are challenged to live peaceably in a society filled with anger,
In which reactivity and outrage are normal,
Where most everyone is living with trauma of some kind or other,
And systemic dysfunction is all around.
We see how the dominant culture habitually covers up conflict, calling it peace,
While disregarding justice…

Proper 16 (Year A): Litany for Renewing the Mind

This litany follows the Lectionary texts for Proper 16 of Ordinary time in Year A. I added references to 1 Corinthians 2 and, as ever, Luke 1.  I would also like to call attention to the story of the Hebrew Midwives in Exodus 1, which is also part of this week's readings, and for which I have an accompanying litany - it happens to be one of my favorite I've ever written: Litany for the Midwives. 

God, we are in a time of upheaval:
Political,
Spiritual,
Religious,
Cultural,
Ecological.
Many suffer for lack of stability and resources
Support, care, and services…




Litany for No More War

On this Epiphany day, please join Red Letter Christians today in a prayer vigil at 6pm (in your timezone). If you can’t attend a larger gathering, grab whomever you live with or nearby, light a candle, share a moment of silence and #prayforpeace. This litany may be used (with attribution, please) in any prayer gathering focused on peace. Please share and pray. #nowarwithiran

We must cultivate peace in our own hearts first, allowing the Peace of Christ to root there. This is our work as we pray for peace in the whole earth.

God, we come now to cultivate peace in our hearts
That it may reverberate outward.
We ask that the Peace of Christ, 
The peace beyond understanding,
The peace that blesses enemies,
The peace that turns the other cheek,
The peace that leaves vengeance in your hands,
The peace that seeks empathy,
The peace that practices justice and compassion,
The peace that dissolves ego - 

This baffling and impossible possibility,
This radical peace,
Would rest upon the whole world now,
At home in our hearts, and abroad. 

We do not want to witness more loss of life,
More destruction of homes and livelihoods,
More degradation of land and waterways,
More human suffering.

We do not come to peace lightly.
We know that true peace disrupts violent patterns.
We are not expecting convenience or ease. 
And still, we want true peace;
That our nation may know no more war,
And our children inherit no more suffering. 

Oh God, put a stop to war [with Iran] before it begins.
Raise up peace in the hearts of war-mongers,
Let the egos of the violent be silenced,
And let us move into a more beautiful future;
Our feet firm and confident on the Path of Peace (1),
Our words and actions rooted in the Peace of Christ.  

Amen

  1. Luke 1:79