Praying for Change: Daily Prayers for Anti-Racism (July-September 2022)

Additional Links:

JULY 1, 2022

Christ Jesus, you were a victim of injustice, condemned by those who had the power to save you and ignored by those who might have spoken up on your behalf. Embolden us to use the opportunities we have to speak out against the injustices around us, knowing that you desire justice for all God’s people. Amen.

From “Stations of the Cross: Overcoming Racism, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Atlanta, https://www.stlukesatlanta.org/uploads/images/stations-of-the-cross--overcoming-racism-final_652.pdf, 3.

JULY 4, 2022

O say, can you see
By the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hail'd
At the twilight's last gleaming?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars
Through the perilous fight
O'er the ramparts we watch'd
Were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket's red glare
The bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night
That our flag was still there

O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free
And the home of the brave?

Poem “Defence of Fort M’Henry” by Francis Scott Key, Tune by John Stafford Smith

In the USA, we sing of a flag on this day of independence, God to whom we owe allegiance. With a tear in our heart and lump in our throat, we sing, believing ourselves to be “the best,” a shining example of liberty and freedom in a world of tyranny and oppression.

But what will we proudly hail on this day of celebration? Can we open our eyes to the good we have done as a nation, only to close them against the failings and injustice within? Can we be proud of what we have achieved and what we have produced, without acknowledging the unequal distribution of justice and wealth? For that is what some would have us do, look only to the good and ignore the sin in our midst.

Maybe we should ask it the other way, Lord of grace and of justice. Does admitting our fault mean we are “hating our country,” as some would allege? Does confessing our sin lead only to dissolution and destruction? Or is that we can only heal, we can only grow, we can only be the land of the free and the home of the brave when we admit we have committed grievous sins for which we must repent?

Help us, God of all nations, be humble and proud at once. Help us treasure freedom for all enough to work for justice for all. Help us be who we dream we are. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Derek Weber, June 2022

JULY 5, 2022

God of all, at the beginnings of creation – out of nothing you separated the waters from the sky; as your children, we have been nourished by your waters in our baptism; indeed, your entire creation is given new life and hope through your life-giving waters.

May the waters of your justice flow as we move forward in faith with you. May the waters of your hope embrace us on our journey towards justice. May the waters of your justice sustain us, keep us, encourage us and lead us. May we be given sustenance, strength and hope to create new pathways for your justice to flow.

Amen

Lauren J. Wrightsman, Senior Pastor, Roseville Lutheran Church, Roseville, MN, https://www.rosevillelutheran.org/justice/.

JULY 6, 2022

Let us open our hearts, still our minds and enter a time of prayer.

Let us call forth and hold in our hearts the stories of all who have come before us, the memories of those who are with us today, and the hope for tomorrow and for all of those who will come after us.

Let us be thankful for this opportunity for healing, forgiveness and reconciliation, while knowing that we can never, should never, forget what has brought us here today.

Let us be glad that voice has not only been given to those whose sorrow and pain were their companions in this faith, but that the stories told by those voices have been received with a goal of redemption and understanding.

Let us call upon that light which shines in each of us to give us the strength to walk together into the future and do the work that is necessary, and which does not end here today.

Let us have the wisdom to lovingly have the conversations we need to have with each other, that we must have with each other, in order to grow this faith in radical love and inclusion.

Amen.

Rev. Viola Abbitt, minister at Coastal Virginia Unitarian Universalists in Virginia Beach, VA., https://www.uua.org/worship/words/prayer/promise-and-practice-pastoral-prayer-2.

JULY 7, 2022

Father of the Heavenly Lights, you brought us to life by your Word of truth,

We were made in your image, sons and daughters of all colors.

The cancerous wickedness of racism has caused your children to suffer. Prejudice, discrimination, and hatred have led to brokenness, violence and even death.

We confess that we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have allowed the sin of racism to divide us in what we have done and what we have not done; what we have said and what we have not said.

Purify our hearts and tame our tongues, we pray;

Give us courage to repent, to fight for righteousness, and to love and embrace one another…

In the name of Jesus, Our Lord…

All: Amen

Litany of Confession, by Rev. Rhea Summit, Pastor, New Alexandria UMC, Antiracism Resources, Western PA Conference of the UMC, https://www.wpaumc.org/antiracismworshipresources.

JULY 8, 2022

Hear our prayers, Holy God. Breathe your Spirit over us and all the earth, that barriers would crumble and divisions cease. Make us more fully your co-healers of the broken world. Unite us with all people in bonds of love, that the whole earth and all its peoples may be at peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Concluding Collect, Prayers of the People for Racial Reconciliation, Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, https://indydio.org/2019/02/prayers-of-the-people-for-racial-reconciliation-created-by-standing-commission-on-liturgy-and-music-subcommittee-on-racial-reconciliation/.

JULY 11, 2022

Father, your children are crying.
Where there is brokenness, mend our hearts.
Where there is confusion, enlighten our minds.
Where there is despair, ignite our spirits.
Where there is chaos, grant us your peace.

Father, your children are hurting.
Where there is suffering, give us true healing.
Where there is indifference to the pain of others, fill our hearts with empathy.
Where there is fear, replace it with your love.

Father, your children are dying.
Where there is darkness, lead us to your light.
Where there is oppression, grant us freedom.
Where there is death, take us to your Resurrection.

Father, you breathed dignity and worth into every human life.
Each of us is uniquely made, so that we may come to know love in different ways.
Help us to love one another, the way you call us to love.
Help us to act righteously to one another, the way you meant us to act.
Help us to see each other, the way you created us to see.
Help us to be more like Christ, the way you called us to be.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

From the video “Together We Pray,” Salt and Light TV, Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation, https://slmedia.org/blog/together-we-pray-blacklivesmatter.

JULY 12, 2022

God of Mercy:
We’ve lived in darkness, craving your light;
We’ve known fear and now seek your solace;
We’ve seen human life wasted by ignorance;
We’ve felt our weakness and need your strength.

God of Justice:
We’ve lived with conflict, anger, and division long enough;
We’ve known too much violence and hatred;
We’ve seen human dignity suffer at the hands of intolerance;
We’ve felt our trust in one another break or erode.

(Spoken or Sung) Kyrie eleison (Lord, have mercy).

God of Diversity:
So much of life has been altered in recent years;
Clarity has been replaced by confusion;
We have been slow to adapt to change;
What had been reliable has turned to dust.

God of Compassion:
We acknowledge our grief and seek your healing;
We know our isolation and long for your companionship;
We are overwhelmed by the intersection of issues;
We admit our impatience and need your understanding.

(Spoken or Sung) Christie eleison (Christ, have mercy).

God of Peace:
Teach us the wisdom that lives in your heart;
Show us the pathway to lasting wholeness;
Plant the seeds of reconciliation among us;
Guide us to restoration born of forgiveness.

God of Hope:
Send the wind and flame of your Spirit to refresh our soul;
Bring your hand to calm every storm of despair within us;
Help us to be intentional with our choices;
Let us stand in the presence of your steadfast love forever.

(Spoken or Sung) Kyrie eleison (Lord, have mercy).

George R. Crisp, Order of St. Luke, June 1, 2022

JULY 13, 2022

“Summertime” from Porgy and Bess, written by Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward & George Gershwin. Summertime lyrics © Universal Music.

It is summertime, eternal God of ever-changing seasons; and for some, the living is easy. But not for many these days. Threats are jumping and prices are high, corporations are rich, and our future ain’t good-looking. There’s plenty to complain about, and complain we do. We’re prickly, overheated, and too wrapped up in our dissatisfaction to see anything good around us.

That’s our prayer this summertime, Lord, a prayer for holding on to hope—to believe that one day we will rise up singing; that one day, this life we live day-by-day will be a life fit for the sky, fit for the kin-dom of God. And that those who are pushed aside, who are knocked down, who are hated and hunted because of the color of their skin or their country of origin or their method of praying to you will spread their wings and fly, as you intended us all to fly.

Help us hope this long hot summer to not succumb to violence and hate but to lean into the possibilities within us all, the gifts you have given, the grace between us, and realize that there is nothing that can harm us, when you, our father and mother, stand with us, and we stand with you. Help us hope. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Derek Weber, July 2022

JULY 14, 2022

Righteous Savior, I pray against the pain left behind by racism, bigotry, hatred, stereotyping and prejudice. I pray that those who are still hurting from these sins are healed by the presence of Your overwhelming peace and love. Lord, help us to not hate one another, because anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. So, Father, remove the pain that is associated with these memories. Let the experiences of racism, judgment and exclusion strengthen those who have been affected by it. Let their hearts be filled with peace. This we pray, Amen.

“Prayer for People Hurting from Racism,” 7 Strong Prayers for Racial Healing, April 23, 2019, ConnectUS, https://connectusfund.org/7-strong-prayers-for-racial-healing.

JULY 15, 2022

Forgive me, Lord, for the times when I heard stories of pain, of oppression and racism, and simply walked away. My sympathy in the moment was far too insufficient. You have shown me what You require of me. You want me to do, to love, to walk—these are actions I’m to take, Lord.

I know true, godly passion can only come from You, so draw me continually into Your embrace. Help me to love what You love and fight against what you fight. Most importantly, help me to make the most of every moment, to engage in this holy battle for freedom against oppression.

Jennifer Slattery, “30 Day Prayer Challenge for Ending Racism,” iBelieve.com (June 15, 2020),Salem Web Services, https://www.ibelieve.com/faith/day-anti-racism-prayer-challenge.html.

JULY 18, 2022

God, we are stunned and deeply troubled by the killings that occurred last week, and every week, all across our country. We lift prayers to you, asking that your Spirit intercede for us and for this world…

We pray that your Church does not become polarized any more than it already is in this moment – may the Church proclaim, with words and with action, both that black lives matter and that acts of violence against public servants are wrong.

May our community and the greater Church vocalize God’s definitive “NO” to the murder of black lives. May all of us be awakened and stand alongside the black community, willing to lay aside confusion and questions and to proclaim that this epidemic of police violence must be addressed. May privilege and power be used as a means to raise awareness and demand justice. May leaders feel pressure from all who live in their communities—white, brown, black—and respond with plans to stop the destruction of black bodies.

We lift in prayer the police officers who must show up for work today, who are doing a dangerous job for too little pay, who are personally blamed for the failure of the whole system. Give them wisdom and strength as those whom we rely on to maintain composure, fairness, and a commitment to the common good. Come alongside them, Lord. Grant them protection and empower them to serve justly.

We pray for healing in communities that carry the weight of generations of broken-down relationships between law enforcement and the people they are called to serve. We lament our history of racism and pray for love in the face of violence.

May your Church and our community be afflicted in its core again for this sign of a deep sickness in our communities.

May we listen to the prophetic voices speaking truth and pleading for action.

May our prayers find footing, that we might live lives that are answers to our prayers for peace and justice.

Amen.

Adapted from a prayer by Indianapolis First Friends, “Prayer for Racial Justice” by Jason Feffer, August 25, 2020, https://www.practicetribe.com/uncategorized/prayer-for-racial-justice.

JULY 19, 2022

Wake me up Lord, so that the evil of racism finds no home within me.

Keep watch over my heart Lord, and remove from me any barriers to your grace, that may oppress and offend my brothers and sisters.

Fill my spirit Lord, so that I may give services of justice and peace.

Clear my mind Lord, and use it for your glory.

And finally, remind us Lord that you said, "blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God."

Amen.

from “For the Love of One Another” (1989), a special message from the Bishops' Committee on Black Catholics of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops on the Occasion of the Tenth Anniversary of the Pastoral Letter, Brothers and Sisters to Us, the U.S. Catholic bishops' Pastoral Letter on Racism (1979). https://www.usccb.org/resources/prayer-service-racial-healing-our-land.

JULY 20, 2022

"Now therefore revere the LORD and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. Now if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." - Joshua 24:14-15 NRSV

“Racism is a choice.” That’s what my interlocutor stated with righteous confidence, Lord. A choice. A choice that we could un-choose. A choice born out of the hate that resides in a heart. A choice that grows from the seed of fear cast by others who have made such a choice. That’s all, just a choice. So, God of justice and peace, tell us to stop making this choice! For heaven’s sake, for your children’s sake, make us stop.

Your servant Joshua stood before the people of God and offered a choice. Choose this day, he declared in that oh-so-quotable way. And they all said, “We choose God! We choose right. We choose justice!” They chose. And the story ended there, right? All was well with the people of God from that moment on. Wasn’t it?

Maybe there is more involved than our choices. Paul wrestled with his choices and found himself doing that which he didn’t choose. Maybe we’re all wrapped up in things bigger than we can see. Maybe we are struggling against powers, systems, habits, and structures that help us bend in an unchosen direction.

The truth is, we aren’t so good at choosing. That is why we need a savior. Yes, we need to choose. We need to choose to see one another the way you see us; as precious children of God in all our wild diversity and rainbow variety; we need to choose. Choose whom we will follow. Help us choose, especially we need to choose against our inclinations. Help us choose you and the kin-dom you invite us into. Help us choose. Amen.

Derek Weber, July 2022

JULY 21, 2022

Gracious God, we thank you for making one human family of all the peoples of the earth and for creating all the wonderful diversity of cultures. Enrich our lives by ever-widening circles of fellowship and show us your presence in those who differ most from us.

Lord, set us free from the bondage of racism that denies the humanity of every human being and the prejudices within us that deny the dignity of those who are oppressed. Today we ask your forgiveness for the part we have played.

Lord, forgive us when we do not fully love our neighbor as ourselves.

Lord, forgive us when we fail to recognize your image in all.

Lord, forgive us when we see injustice and don’t act or speak up.

Lord, forgive our valuing a false peace over a righteous justice.

Lord, forgive us when we use words and phrases that are racially demeaning. Forgive us when we use stereotypes or implicit bias to judge others.

Lord, forgive our self-defense that keeps us from humble learning and grace-filled conversation.

Lord, forgive our pride.

Lord, forgive us when we speak too quickly with clichés and easy answers. Forgive us when we stay silent out of fear. Help us when we stumble.

O God, call us into a deeper relationship to be your church for the sake of the world. Help us to see with new eyes the injustices within church and society. Call us to have a loving heart that respects and uplifts the humanity and dignity of every person; open our ears to listen to and learn from the experiences of people of color. Open our mouths to speak up and about injustices. Join us with others to work for racial equity and inclusion for all people. Lord in your mercy, Hear our prayer.

“Forgive Us” litany by Summit Avenue Presbyterian Social Justice Book Club Members, Bremerton, WA, http://www.summitave.net/prayers.

JULY 22, 2022

O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us, in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Book of Common Prayer, Public Domain, https://www.creativecommonsprayer.com/vocations/parents-breaking-white-silence.

JULY 25, 2022

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the people of this land], that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Prayer for Social Justice,” Book of Common Prayer, 823, Episcopal Church, https://www.episcopalct.org/category/prayers.

JULY 26, 2022

O Lord, hear our cry! Grant us the heart to weep with those who weep. Give us empathy and understanding. Create trust where there is pain. Give us courage to stand with those who suffer and to seek justice for the oppressed. Give us grace to persevere, to repent, to forgive, and to love. Make your church the repentant, reconciled, and united people you call us to be. Holy Spirit, be our help!

Excepted from Prayers of the People, Third Church, Henrico, VA, https://www.thirdrva.org/blog/june-1-prayers-of-the-people.

JULY 27, 2022

Lord, our baptismal covenant calls us to strive for justice and peace, and you know how costly that work can be. Bless those called to the holy work of justice – of protest and public policy, of advocacy and organizing, of reconciliation and listening. Send them partners to help shoulder the burdens, so that justice may grow and spread from the heart of community. Sustain them when they are weary. Inspire them when their hearts can no longer imagine your Kingdom because they see a world that doesn’t seem to want your justice. Help them to know that when they are speaking for those whom the world has silenced, they are speaking for you. That when they stand up for those whom the world has cast aside, they are standing up for you. That when they advocate for health care, or to heal your creation, they are binding up your wounds. And finally, help them to know that although they may never see the fruits of their labor, their acts of love ripple through time, and will one day be heard as the sound of justice rolling down like waters. Amen.

“A Blessing for Those Who Strive for Justice” by Rev. Gini Gerbasi, Movement Prayers, https://www.movementprayers.com/post/a-blessing-for-those-who-strive-for-justice.

JULY 28, 2022

In 1866, the U.S. Congress passed the Army Organization Act. This law allowed black Americans to enlist in the military and fight for our country. The army formed a military unit comprised of Black Americans. It included black soldiers who fought for the Union army in the Civil War, ex-slaves, and freemen. They served with pride and distinguished themselves for their bravery and fearlessness. These ferocious warriors served in the 9th and 10th Cavalry, as well as in other units. They fought in the Indian Wars and distinguished themselves. Native Americans feared them and nicknamed them Buffalo Soldiers. It is believed that either the Cheyenne or Comanche gave them this nickname for their fierce and fearless performance in the wars. While their performance on the battlefield was remarkable, they suffered from racism. In 1992, Congress passed a law proclaiming July 28 as Buffalo Soldiers Day.

https://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/July/buffalo-soldiers-day.htm

I cannot imagine, God of all possibilities, fighting for and dying for a nation that had enslaved me. I cannot imagine the bravery and sense of duty and commitment that would bring these men to continue to bring honor to their names despite being surrounded by abuse and rejection and hate. We humbly bow before the witness of the Buffalo Soldiers on this day; and all who wear the uniform of a nation that doesn’t respect them as it should.

What does it take to be able to see a larger vision, a new possibility, an advance of justice and of peace in a time of injustice and conflict? What does it take to work for reconciliation and for equality even when some in power see no need for such things? How can we continue to move forward when the cost of doing so seems to rise day by day?

Give us the grace and tenacity of the Buffalo Soldiers, Lord God of us all, that we might continue to strive for peace and for justice. Amen.

Derek Weber, July 2022

JULY 29, 2022

God of healthy disagreements, God of principled stands: we need not have the same mind to sit around the same table. We need not share precise beliefs to fit within a home. We need not speak the same dialect to be part of a loving family. And we need not see the world the same to know it’s big enough for all. As we hold firm to what we know is right, may we honor the ground where others stand, so that more of the earth, and more of our imagination, may be hallowed in your name. Amen

“Prayers and Witnessing Peace and Justice” (Oct.6, 2020, Christ Church, Coronado, https://www.christchurchcoronado.org/blog/prayers-and-witnessing-peace-and-justice/.

AUGUST 1, 2022

Oh Lord, let your light shine in people’s hearts that the false philosophy that one nation is superior than the other becomes disqualified, Lord, help us to bend our knees, to kneel and bow before The King of Glory, and to pray that the love of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ will melt people’s hearts and disperse hatred and prejudice, and impress upon them the truth that ALL PEOPLE ARE CREATED EQUAL without exception!

Archbishop Costakis Evangelou, International President, Ixthus Church Council cited on “Prayers for Racial Justice” (May 8, 2021), Free Churches Group website, https://www.freechurches.org.uk/news/2021/5/28/prayers-for-racial-justice.

AUGUST 2, 2022

Merciful God, we pray for a world in which the lowly are lifted up, as we remember the children of minority ethnic communities living with stigma and racism navigating institutions who judge them. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

Deliver us from the fear and suspicion that separate us from each other and place limits on hope and healing. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

We pray on this day for Christians and for people of goodwill that we will stand for the rights of all human beings regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, national origin, colour and gender. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

We pray for your courage and wisdom in the fight against the policing of conversations about systemic racism that limit the depth of dialogue, understanding and attempts to diminish and dismiss truthful conversations. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

May each of us may acknowledge our part in mistakes and sins of the past pertaining to discrimination and racism and may a spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation exist among peoples who share a history of mutual mistrust, hatred or aggression. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

May all victims of racial prejudice be recipients of your abundant grace and love so that they may forgive those who persecute them, and may their persecutors have a change of heart, even as all people seek to work for justice, peace and reconciliation. God of justice and peace…

Hear our prayer.

Excerpted from Intercessory Prayers in the Global Prayer UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, World Council of Churches, https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/prayers/global-prayer-un-international-day-for-the-elimination-of-racial-discrimination.

AUGUST 3, 2022

God our Maker

You call us here to worship You together. To bear witness to Your creativity seen, heard and found in all who gather. We are all Your children, bearing Your divine image, shaped by Your imagination and breath.

You have gifted us
with the beauty of difference
the blessing of diversity
the pleasure of individuality
and the bond of love and peace.

The Church of Scotland, Worship Resources for Racial Justice Sunday, https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/weekly-worship/monthly/february-2022/13-february-6th-sunday-after-epiphany-racial-justice-sunday#prayers.

AUGUST 4, 2022

“The most segregated hour in America.” That’s what the worship hour has been named, Lord who calls us to gather for worship week after week. Dr. King, Malcolm X, and so many others have been quoted as making that declaration. Most often, the ones excluded, driven out, forced to worship “with your own kind.” That’s how I heard it said to a beautiful young black mother who dared to come and worship in my dad’s church when I was a child. They might have even thought they were doing her a favor, trying to bring her the comfort of others like her when she gathered at the throne of glory. They might have even thought she wouldn’t be happy in this church; “It wasn’t her kind,” they said.

Lord of all people, what is our kind when we gather for worship? Sinners in need of redeeming? Hurting in need of healing? Hungry in need of feeding? Broken in need of grace? What is our kind, O God who made all of us?

Have we come very far since those days? Do we self-segregate so that we’ll feel more comfortable? I thought of that young mother as I worshiped in an unfamiliar yet welcoming church recently. A cooperative parish, they called it, a unity service of all the churches belonging together. Three churches were African American, and one was Euro-American. But not everyone came; one group was conspicuous by its absence. They preferred their own kind, it seemed.

Christ, have mercy on all kinds. Amen.

Derek Weber, July 2022

AUGUST 5, 2022

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.

Prayer for Racial Justice (June 23, 2020), Bon Secours Retreat and Conference Center, Marriottsville, MD, https://rccbonsecours.com/2020/06/23/prayer-for-racial-justice.

AUGUST 8, 2022

Most merciful God,

We confess that we are mired in sin and cannot get free on our own. We have judged others based on skin color, sex, gender, sexuality, religion, nationality, ability, financial and social status. We have preferred the ease and simplicity of placing others into boxes to the complexity of getting to know one another as siblings. We have contributed to and often benefited from systems that maintain the power of a privileged few. We have remained silent in the face of racism, sexism, heterosexism, transphobia, ableism, and other forms of prejudice. Through both our action and inaction, war, poverty, and environmental degradation continue on massive scales. We have ignored your prophets and turned from your command to put you first and neighbor second. We have permitted the ends for which we live to become confused with the means by which we live. Forgive our ignorance. Forgive our weakness. Forgive our sin. May your love overwhelm us, your peace disturb us, and your spirit move us so that we cannot help but do your will at all times and in all places, always glorifying your name.

Amen.

by Rev. Elizabeth Rawlings, “Confession of Complicity in Injustice,” Disrupt Worship Project, http://www.disruptworshipproject.com/confession-of-complicity-in-injustice/.

AUGUST 9, 2022

Dear God, in our efforts to dismantle racism, we understand that we struggle not merely against flesh and blood but against powers and principalities – those institutions and systems that keep racism alive by perpetuating the lie that some members of the family are inferior and others superior.

Create in us a new mind and heart that will enable us to see brothers and sisters in the faces of those divided by racial categories.

Give us the grace and strength to rid ourselves of racial stereotypes that oppress some of us while providing entitlements to others.

Help us to create a Church and nation that embraces the hopes and fears of oppressed People of Color where we live, as well as those around the world.

Heal your family, God, and make us one with you, in union with our brother Jesus, and empowered by your Holy Spirit. Amen.

“A Prayer for Uplifting Human Dignity (May 25, 2018), Written by the Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team, Dominican Sisters of Peace, https://oppeace.org/blog/2018/05/25/prayer-uplifting-human-dignity/.

AUGUST 10, 2022

Merciful God,
You made us in Your image,
With minds to know You,
With hearts to love You,
With wills to serve You.
But our knowledge is imperfect,
Our love inconstant and immature,
And our obedience incomplete and self-serving.
Help us day by day grow in Your likeness, which is so widely displayed in the diversity of creation.
Help us to understand our own prejudices and narrow-mindedness.
Help us to love our neighbour as we ourselves long to be loved.
Help us to serve others with humility and gratitude.
Do not hold our sin against us, but help us to repent of outdated and inappropriate world views.
Help us to mature in our thinking, loving and serving.
Amen.

Prayers from resources prepared by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, from a PowerPoint from Upton Hall School, UK, slide 5, https://www.uptonhallschool.co.uk/_site/data/files/prayers/8B496EECD901E4537B12EECE1A5A32AA.pptx.

AUGUST 11, 2022

Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other. Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky.

Psalm 85:10-11 NRSV

“Love and faithfulness,” “righteousness and peace”: these words seem to be from an alien tongue these days, O God of hope and promise. We are too often defined by hate and brokenness, by injustice and conflict. A glance through our social media “conversations” only confirms this negativity. So, how do we hold on to hope; how do we work for justice, when our leaders are bent on division and distrust? How do we lean in for this holy kiss, when we fear we will be bitten or burned instead? How long must we wait for fulfillment, for your kin-dom to be on earth as it is in heaven?

Or is it only in heaven? Open our eyes, Lord of this holy kiss, to see you at work through us. Help us see gestures of reconciliation, of equality, of justice. Help us promote the hands united across barriers of race or class. Help us lean into the grace of goodness, even in the face of systemic racism and inbred hate. Help us march on, God of promise and hope, till victory is won. Amen.

Derek Weber, August 2022

AUGUST 12, 2022

Dear Lord:

You are our God during our weary years, and you are with us during our silent tears. You have provided a bridge for us over our troubled waters. Thank you!

A virtual call to worship summons us to an approximate togetherness. Sometimes we come to you with zoomed prayers and parking lot praises.

Our joyful noise can hide from the world the complaints of our souls and our aching hearts. With sorrows too wrenching for words, we moaned and breathed deeply our prayers to you. We speak to you in our music, our poetry, our dance, our art, and in our silence. From a doctor’s office, hospital room, or our kitchen table or from a pew in a sacred space, or on sidewalks or street corners, dirt roads or concrete pavements, on our jobs or standing in an unemployment line, we never cease calling upon you, because where-ever we are our very daily living is our prayer of hope to you.

We listen for you in our anguish and in our joy.

We listen for you in voices crying for justice, for peace, for health, and for strength.

We listen for the healing of our wounds and feelings of woundedness that are found in our reading and hearing your sacred words and in the grace-filled actions of those whose gifts make us laugh and feel good about being alive.

We pray for our nation that this time of its crisis be an opportunity for an old dream to have new life. A renewal to our mutual commitment that all of us have life, liberty, and freedom to pursue our happiness. Let us lay down by the riverside our burdens and all forms of human oppression and war.

We come to you O, God, as we are and with all we hope to be in this world.

We come to you O, God, standing on your promise to be with us always and to make a way when there seems to be no way to go or turn.

We come to you O, Lord, for in our faith in you we find strength to endure today and hope for tomorrow.

We come to you merciful God, to a holy pause in which to find rest for our souls.

We come to you with decisions to make and to celebrate our thanksgivings.

We come to you, our Creator, so that we can come to ourselves and know that we are precious in your sight.

We come to you with humility and yet also with the boldness of one who is your beloved and for this we give thanks. Amen.

Rev. Frederick J. “Jerry” Streets, Senior Pastor of Dixwell Congregational Church in New Haven, “Prayers for Us All in These Challenging Times,” Children’s Defense Fund website, https://www.childrensdefense.org/child-watch-columns/health/2020/prayers-for-us-all-in-these-challenging-times.

AUGUST 15, 2022

Dearest God,

We stand before you because we must. We stand before You because truths that should be self-evident are not so evident in our country. And so we turn to you to breathe ever more of Your Spirit into us because we find we cannot breathe, the arms of armed forces wrapped around our throats when we call out for justice.

We call to you in defiance of a national system that betrays our noble ideals, where tanks and blood fill our streets, where every Black man, woman, and child is twenty times likelier to be killed by police.

We shout to the Heavens with one, unified voice:

Black. Lives. Matter.

We are called by scripture to pray for the day when we will beat swords into plowshares and study war no more, when the surplus of war led by greed and deception will not spill into our streets, where swords and tanks and rubber bullets and tear gas will be beaten thinner and thinner, the iron of hatred vanishing forever. We pray to you because, as our prophets have taught us: human suffering anywhere concerns men and women everywhere. We call to you, O God, because Your Image was abandoned on rainy concrete for 4 and a half hours. We call to you, O God, because Your Spirit was choked out of a father who called out 11 times, “I can’t breathe.”

We raise our hands to you, knowing that the work is ours to do, Black, white, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, atheist, young, old, gay, straight – These are your images, battered by those sworn to protect and serve.

We are all responsible for what happens next. And so we pray to You, Source of Life, raise up our eyes to see You in each other’s eyes, to take risks for justice, to bring through our unified prayer today more Love and Compassion into the world. Ignite us to combat the hidden prejudice which causes police to open fire in fear, which transforms a child in a hoodie into a hoodlum, a person into a threat.

We pray today not for calm but for righteousness to flow like a mighty river, until peace fills the earth as the waters fill the sea. Comfort the families of all who grieve. Strengthen us to work for a world redeemed.

And we say together: Amen.

“Black Lives Matter: A Prayer” by Menachem Creditor, inspired by Yehudah Amichai z”l and Rabbi Rachel Barenblat on “T’ruah, the rabbinic call for human rights”, https://truah.org/resources/black-lives-matter-a-prayer.

AUGUST 16, 2022

Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p.826, cited on Our Commitment to Racial Justice, https://www.thefallschurch.org/copy-of-the-community.

AUGUST 17, 2022

Divine Masterpiece Creator, you designed humanity in your Imago Dei, and it was good.

We claim this day to live in liberation from
Biases that dehumanize us;
Systems that continue to oppress one group over another;
Behaviors that harm and destroy relationships;
and the ways that continue to claim power
over communities and your creative order.

We stand with the assurance that the
Divine Spirit will lead us to liberation,
from chaos to order,
from injustice to justice,
from invisibility to wholeness,
from hatred to love,
from oppression to Freedom!

So, we boldly join in singing the South African hymn words: Freedom is coming. Freedom is coming. Freedom is coming. So let it be so! Amen

Rev. Dr. Giovanni Arroyo, General Secretary, General Commission on Religion and Race of The United Methodist Church, “Prayers of Liberation,” page 3, https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ef390122cafce385dd4d822/t/629e6a9608de700d22a01177/1654549142466/Week+6+Liberation+Prayers.pdf.

AUGUST 18, 2022

It’s back to school time for many, Lord of wisdom and knowledge. We’ve turned our schools into battlegrounds. On the one hand, there is the constant threat of violence and shootings. On the other, there are the angry arguments about what subjects should be taught to our children, about what part of history should be featured, or about how we present this nation in which we live. What should we cover up; what should we downplay? What might cause students stress if we said too much?

Is it too much to ask that we tell the truth? Even that seems slippery these days, that’s true. But being honest about the struggles of this nation to live up to the ideals we profess seems like a way to prepare young people for the struggles they will face too. Admitting when we’ve gone astray and didn’t see all people as – well – people, might enhance efforts toward equality today. Especially when we also teach that there were those of all races who believed in justice and worked for equity.

Bless our children, God of all of us, who walk a difficult path these days. Let them not be pawns in our chess games of power and dominance. But let them flourish, and hope, and know they are loved. Even as you continue to educate us all on how to live in your kin-dom. In the name of Christ, we pray. Amen.

Derek Weber, August 2022

AUGUST 19, 2022

For the racism which denies dignity to those who are different, Lord, forgive us:

Lord, have mercy.

For the racism which recognizes prejudice in others and never in ourselves, Christ, forgive us:

Christ, have mercy.

For the racism which will not recognize the work of your Spirit in other cultures, Lord, forgive us:

Lord, have mercy.

Prayer of Confession, United Church of Canada, cited by North Carolina Council of Churches, https://www.ncchurches.org/lectionary/racism-reconciliation/#worship.

AUGUST 22, 2022

In these days, as in days past,
our mothers and grandmothers have become mourners.
our fathers and grandfathers have become grievers.
our children have become wanderers in vacant rooms.
our kinfolk have become pallbearers.
our communities have become filled with empty chairs.
Remember the people you have redeemed, Holy One.
Remember the work of salvation brought about by your love.

You made a way out of no way for slaves to cross the sea on dry land.
Arise O God and defend your own cause.
Raise up in us the cries of outrage.

You made water to flow in the desert for Hagar and Ishmael when they were driven out.
Arise O God and defend your own cause.
Raise up in us commitment to the long struggle for justice.

You cast out demons so that people might be restored to community.
Arise O God and defend your own cause.
Raise up in us the determination to drive out racism.

You witnessed the death of your Beloved Child.
Arise O God and defend your own cause.
Raise up in us the grief that cannot be comforted.

You brought new life from the crucifixion of state violence and the wounds of abandonment.
Arise O God and defend your own cause.
Raise up in us the courage to speak truth to power, and hope to hatred.

God of the ones with hands up and the ones who can’t breathe,
of those who #sayhername and those who #shutitdown,
of “we who believe in freedom” and we who “have nothing to lose but our chains,”
look upon the world you have made.
Do not forget your afflicted people forever
so that we might praise your holy name with joyful lips. Amen.

Excerpted from Prayer of Lament written by the Rev. Dr. Sharon R. Fennema, Assistant Professor of Christian Worship and Director of Worship Life, Pacific School of Religion. https://dojustice.crcna.org/article/prayer-love-face-violence.

AUGUST 23, 2022

Mary, friend and mother to all, through your Son, God has found a way to unite himself to every human being, called to be one people, sisters and brothers to each other.

We ask for your help in calling on your Son, seeking forgiveness for the times when we have failed to love and respect one another.

We ask for your help in obtaining from your Son the grace we need to overcome the evil of racism and to build a just society.

We ask for your help in following your Son, so that prejudice and animosity will no longer infect our minds and hearts but will be replaced with a love that respects the dignity of each person.

Mother of the Church, the Spirit of your Son Jesus warms our hearts: pray for us. Amen.

Prayer to Overcome Racism, The Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico, Racial Justice Resources, https://archdiosf.org/racial-justice-resources.

AUGUST 24, 2022

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son:
Look with compassion on the whole human family.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Break down the walls that separate us.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Unite us in bonds of love.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Empower us to tell the truth about our church and race.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Empower us to proclaim the dream of God’s beloved community.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Empower us to practice the way of love in the pattern of Jesus.
Lord, hear our prayers.
Empower us to repair the breach in our society and our institutions.
Lord, hear our prayers.
God of signs and wonders, empower us for this healing work in the name of your son our
Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.

by Dwala Nobles and John Hayes, for Racial Justice Georgia, https://racialjusticega.org/our-mission/.

AUGUST 25, 2022

There is no longer Jew or Greek,
there is no longer slave or free,
there is no longer male and female;
for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 3:28 NRSV

“No longer.” What a phrase the old saint presents, O Loving God of possibilities and of hope. There is no longer . . . division, separation, hierarchy. No longer. There is no longer jealousy and envy, no longer oppression and hatred. No longer.

Except, there is. Even among the ones baptized into Christ, even among those who have clothed themselves with Christ. There is still this dividing wall, this way of seeing and of being. There is us and them, those like us and those not like us. How can this be, Lord, how can this be?

Can we begin, in whatever small ways are within us, to live into the possibility of “no longer”? Can we embrace that kin-dom way of living right here and right now? Where do we begin? How do we dare to believe that there is a “no longer” and that there is a oneness? Shall we risk “no longer”?

Christ, have mercy. Amen.

Derek Weber, August 2022

AUGUST 26, 2022

Lord, we pray that laws and other fundamental structures within the government that are biased against people of color will be exposed and removed. Father, may your Holy Spirit find its way into our court system, the prison system, legislative systems, and other government institutions and open the spiritual doors for change. I pray for laws that will provide equal opportunities for all and laws that will help those that have been oppressed or disenfranchised and stuck in a cycle of poverty or injustice. May you place people of integrity, enlightened by your Word, that can make these changes possible.

Lord, remove any spirits of oppression and confusion from all government institutions. Remove any spiritual elements whose goal is to steal, kill, and to destroy.

Praying for Laws to Change in Favor of Racial Equality, Fruitfully Living, https://www.fruitfullyliving.com/how-to-pray-against-racial-injustice.

AUGUST 29, 2022

O God of Justice and Mercy,

We prayerfully lament and repent from our sins of the past and present, find hope and redemption in the resurrected Jesus Christ, and welcome your Holy Spirit to show us new and relevant ways to embrace an evolving revelation of how to act more justly with love, boldness, and courage. In this endeavor, we stand alongside all who are impacted by racism, violence, and trauma in the U.S. and throughout the world. Amen and Ashe.

Bread for the World, https://www.bread.org/blog/call-life-racial-justice-healing-and-transformation.

AUGUST 30, 2022

Lord Jesus Christ,

in your ministry you were approached by people of many different nations and cultures. You listened to their cry for help, treated them with love and compassion, and brought them healing and wholeness. In our own time may we provide to all those who are suffering the help that they need and the care that they require. May we respond to the invitation of the Holy Spirit to dream of a world made new where the poor are not forgotten but are given the opportunity to live and flourish with good health and equal prospects.

We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

Prayer for Racial Justice Sunday, 2021, The Catholic Church, Bishops Conference for England and Wales, https://www.cbcew.org.uk/home/events/previous-events/days-of-prayer/racial-justice-sunday-2021.

AUGUST 31, 2022

O giver of all good gifts, you have differently blessed and differently challenged your children.

Some of us have handicaps for which we need the aid of social services, and some of us find our quest for such aid hindered by the complication of racial discrimination. Help us to overcome barriers of all kinds that prevent your people from functioning fully and freely, and let us never tolerate the denial of equal services to anyone because of their race.

From the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia, cited by Social Justice Resource Center, https://socialjusticeresourcecenter.org/prayers/racism.

SEPTEMBER 1, 2022

“That’s not who we are.” I’ve heard that statement, Lord of truth, used to brush off bad behavior or wrong attitudes. “We are better than this.” We say these things to make ourselves feel better about the brokenness that we allow to continue. It is as if our image of ourselves is always better than the reality. As if any hate speech, any dismissiveness is a momentary lapse, not the core of who we are.

When you walked this earth, you were heard to say, “what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart” (Matthew 15:18 NRSV). Which is to say our words do reveal who we are. The hate we speak or allow to be spoken around us is where our hearts are. We are our words and our thoughts and our actions. We are, as Isaiah bemoaned, of unclean lips and we live among a people of unclean lips (Isaiah 6:5 NRSV). Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.

Bring the coal of cleansing and heal us. Remove the uncleanness and make us worthy of being bearers of your word – a word of justice and reconciliation, a word of unity and equality. Forgive us and make us witnesses to your kin-dom. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Derek Weber, August 2022

SEPTEMBER 2, 2022

Lord Jesus, we offer our prayers to you today for our world, our country, our state and our local community. We too must experience the weight of the cross on the road to Calvary. Help us to use the opportunities that we have to speak out against the injustices around us and around the world…..and so we pray: Forgive us Lord. Show us the way.

Opening Prayer from Stations of the Cross for Social Justice, St. Bonaventure, page 1, https://www.stbonaventure.net/documents/2021/3/Stations%20of%20the%20Cross%20for%20Social%20Justice.pdf.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022

It is Labor Day, God of vocation and of purpose. For all we celebrate labor and those who are laborers, we often don’t think too highly of certain ways of working, necessary workers, essential workers. So, help us on this Labor Day to give thanks to those who work with their hands, those who get dirty, those who sacrifice while working for the good of us all. Help us give honor to those who do the jobs many won’t do. May we who speak of equality recognize the equality of labor and the dignity of all those who work. Amen.

Derek Weber, August 2022

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

Grant us, Lord God, a vision of your world as your love would have it:
a world where the weak are protected, and none go hungry or poor;
a world where the riches of creation are shared, and everyone can enjoy them;
a world where different races and cultures live in harmony and mutual respect;
a world where peace is built with justice, and justice is guided by love.
Give us the inspiration and courage to build it, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Justice, Catholic Online, https://www.catholic.org/news/hf/faith/story.php?id=84785.

SEPTEMBER 7, 2022

Lord, I desperately want to hear you, gain understanding and insight that is from you. The talking heads of this world are of no interest to me. But your wisdom I crave more than life.

Lord, give me understanding for my black and brown brothers and sisters. Help me do the difficult work of lamenting, mourning and listening. Show me when to speak and what to say as a result. Give me boldness and courage to speak and stand for justice. Help me not view myself as a “savior” but instead a soldier for your peace, love, and justice – gifts you desire for all humankind. Lord, break my heart for what breaks yours.

Forgive me for desiring and seeking the easy way out, the comfortable and the least offensive. Forgive me for every time I’ve sought my own interests, instead of yours. Forgive me for every time I’ve contributed to systematic and personal racism and for every time I’ve thought of someone or treated them as anything other than a human being, known and loved by you and created in your image. I’m so sorry. Change me, Lord. Make me clean, make me new. Make me like yourself. Fill me with your spirit and show me how to walk in it. Where you lead me, I will go. Help me be a light in darkness – a light that doesn’t seek to illuminate self, but instead directs and points to you; the very light of the world.

Amen.

“An Honest Prayer for Racial Healing and Justice” by Kim Smith, The Tiny Spark Blog, https://tinysparkblog.com/an-honest-prayer-for-racial-healing-and-justice.

SEPTEMBER 8, 2022

There is only one mind, God.
There is only one source, God.
There is only one life,

And that is life as a Spiritual Being, as a Loving Being.
This universe is the glory of God.
It is a moving, flexible, fluidic creation.

It is alive with life, abundance and all the richness of God.
I express the deep knowledge that God is within me
And every individual is inseparably one with the infinite presence and power.
We all come from the same source.
I now speak my word for myself and for all,
As I activate the Law of justice.
I believe that I am judged by the content of my character.
I strive for a world where all oppressive chains are removed.
I affirm that we are all fighting for recognition as free humans in society.
My world is as big as I make it.
Taken in my totality, I transcend questions of race, gender, religion, age, wealth or appearance.
On a level playing field, the chains of injustice are removed.
I am my soul, and I allow my soul to evolve.
With a grateful heart, I express overwhelming thankfulness
For more justice, more love, more joy and more power in my life
As I release my word into the action of the Law to be manifest in form as it is already known in mind.
And so it is. Amen

Composed by Marlene Ardoin, RScP, Prayers of the Spirit: Racial Justice, https://prayersofthespirit.com/category/racial-justice.

SEPTEMBER 9, 2022

Leader: Lord Jesus, your Kingdom is good news for a world caught in racial hostility. We ask that you would give us grace for the deep challenges facing our country.