Source of Life, Creator, God: Bless these your people; Bless the hands, the feet, the hearts, and the spirits that gather for such a time as this. May they know their belovedness before you. May we feel your presence palpably. May your provisional grace and your mercy meet us at every turn. May your protective hand be upon us. May you create passageways and estuaries where justice and truth prevail. Sharpen our senses toward the unexpected and give us strength to endure. Help us to be fortified by the mighty cloud of witnesses who have gone before us. May your power be evident and available, today. May the glory of freedom come. May it be so. Amen.
Credit: Naisa Wong
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.
Credit: Rev. Gini Gerbasi