The school shooting in Minneapolis is still weighing heavily on my heart. I have been in a metaphical writing cave finishing up a collection of prayers focused on gun violence, so instead of my regular Friday + Five, I thought I would share another one from the collection. This one is also unedited, so it may change before publishing. Please feel free to use and adapt this for your community and attribute as much as possible.
Let us pray —
One: God, our souls ache as another shooting comes into our view.
ALL: This is not Your will, and is no part of any divine plan.
One: You weep with us in these times of sadness, despair, confusion, and anger
ALL: and so we join our spirits with Yours and come to You in prayer.
One: As much as it hurts our hearts, God, grant us the strength to remember that in life, those who were killed belonged to you, and in death, they belong to you still.
ALL: May we remember each one* was lovingly created in Your image.
One: As heartwrenching as it is to witness, God, grant us the fortitude to pray for friends, families, and communities of those who were killed.
ALL: May we hear and honor their groans, agony, and wailing in heart, body, and soul.
One: As uncomfortable as it may feel, God, grant us the humility to pray for our own spirits.
ALL: May we honor the tender grief that dwells within us all.
One: As disruptive as it may seem, God, grant us the fearlessness to pray for politicians, policy makers, lobbyists, the system, and a culture that values profit more than possibility.
ALL: May wisdom beyond our imagination prevail.
One: As unbearable as it may be, God, grant us the faith to remember that even the shooter is loved by God.
ALL: May we not repay evil acts with evil acts.
One: As distant as it may feel, God grant us the empathy to pray for the shootings that do not grab headlines, for individuals who suffer, grieve, and mourn in silence, and for communities where gun violence is always a possibility.
ALL: May we value all siblings as part of the Body of Christ.
One: As risky as it may feel, God, grant us the courage to speak up, to act out, to march, to protest, and to make Your voice known through our own.
ALL: May we be Your hands, feet, and bodies of healing, hope, and peace.
One: God, be with each of us as You see fit, grant us the space to know grief that is real, to express anger that is righteous, and to embody hope that is in You.
ALL: For the hopes and intentions that You have for Your people are greater than any gunfire can take away.
One: And let us not have to return to this space again.
ALL: In Your healing, just, and hopeful name we pray.
— Amen
* This could be a place to read the names of those killed, “May we remember Brian, Sandra, and Soon Chung were lovingly created in Your image.”
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