A Prayer for Charleston

A prayer for Charleston

Dear God, Creator of all good things, our hearts broke again this week as we learned of the horrible violence emanating from a sacred space, the Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, in Charleston, South Carolina.

Our hearts are broken again and we are so aware, God, that your heart is broken by this as well. God you call us to be peacemakers, like your son, the one called the Prince of Peace.

God, we have failed in that calling. We have failed to be an obedient church. Many of us have lost the passion for justice that your prophets, including Jesus, have called us to proclaim. Others of us have felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit to say something but have not found the courage to do so. We have all fallen short of your glory, God.

And yet, you call us back to you, you call us to prayer and to work. And so let us take the next few moments, in the silence of our hearts, to pray for the people of Charleston, and for the places we know in the world are riddled by violence every day.

Please pause for several long moments of silence.

God, help us to weep with those who weep, rejoice with those who rejoice, and partner with you to see your dreams of a fully connected and whole creation come to pass. Help us to see your dream of a world where love rules supreme and where we recognize one another for who we truly are: beautiful beings, called beloved by you.

In the name of your precious son, Jesus, and guided by the Holy Spirit, let all of God’s children say, Amen.