Loving God, In a world where people so many cannot escape the violence, help those of us who are not under constant threat be radically committed to non-violence. May we never glorify our friends, our family or our elected officials threatening others with harm. May we never remain silent when others use language of hate when speaking of or to any of Your beloved children. Help us to measure our ...
Read MoreGod of Peace, On Veteran’s Day, we pray for all who have served our country on land or sea or air, at home or in far away lands. We pray for the safety of future veterans in active combat zones, and for those in places where violence could rear its ugly head at any time. We pray for those who made it home alive, but for whom life has never been the ...
Read MoreThere is a quote often attributed to the Talmud, but more accurately described as a loose translation of a portion of the Pirke Avot that is commentary on Micah 6:8. Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it. While I agree with the premise and ...
Read MoreIt's not that we don't care, God. Of course we care about people in Morrocco What kind of monsters would we be to not be horrified that the death toll from the earthquake is almost up to 3000 people. 3000! On this day when we commemorate the largest loss of life on American soil, our siblings in Morocco--a country far smaller than ours--is about to eclipse that record. Of course we ...
Read MoreNote: I've been writing a version of this prayer for several years now. Here is the 2023 version. Maker of all things, We pray for those who are overworked and overwrought. For those who are overwhelmed and just plain over it. For those who feel like there are not enough hours in the day and for those who fill their hours with that which does not feel like enough. For those who have lost ...
Read More(as Idalia makes landfall) Creating God, It’s hard when Your good creation is trying to kill us. It’s hard to reconcile a loving creator with a creation that can, at times, be devastatingly beautiful and then be just plain devastating. We know we are complicit We know we haven’t cared for Your Earth the way You told us to But, to be fair, these natural born killers existed way before any coal engines or smoke stacks ...
Read MoreThere are far too many Pinterest and Instagram stories out there from people who get up at five in the morning, fix themselves a cup of coffee or a very specific kind of tea and then spend an hour with their Bible and notebook in prayer and study. So, that is fantastic...if it works for you. But most of us are NOT going to be able to pull that off in ...
Read MoreGod of love and God of all, We enter into this election with more anxiety than hope about the future of our country. We are battling for the soul of America, but we have very different ideas of how that soul should look, feel and behave. We fear for the safety and peace of our nation, as many have already threatened violence if the results are not the ones they want. We ...
Read MoreWe believe in children whose excitement and energy and creativity inspire us all to be more childlike in our lives and in our faith. We believe in teachers and in their call to nurture and educate amidst increasingly difficult circumstances. We believe in the grown-ups who wake up the kids, fix the lunches, volunteer at the schools and help with the homework. We believe in friends and co-workers and neighbors who step in ...
Read MoreWe see you and we celebrate you We see the good you do We see the love you share We see the people you serve We hear the names people call you Names that we do not recognize or publicize, lest we legitimize For those names don’t define you We know you by one name: Beloved Child of God Created in God’s own image We don’t pretend to know your pain But when you hurt, we hurt, too We may not ...
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