Pray With Us For Peace
TO
REQUEST A PRAYER FOR PEACE
The
pressing need for a peaceful world is becoming increasingly
apparent as world leaders struggle with immensely difficult
decisions. As events unfold in fragile parts of the world,
the Sisters of St. Joseph of Baden are called to seek a
deeper union with God, with ourselves and with our neighbors
across all continents. We invite you to share in our desire
for unity and reconciliation by saying and sharing with
others the following prayers for peace, which have been
written by our Sisters:
Gracious
God, as lives are being altered
in violence and death,
we beg for your mercy
and compassion.
Through
the intercession of John Paul II,
we ask you to inspire
the minds, hearts and spirits
of those who hold authority,
power and decision
to bring an end
to the war in Iraq.
God,
we ask this with confidence
that you hear our prayer.
Amen.
—
A Sister of St. Joseph
O
God, you have placed within us
A longing for union with you and with all our neighbors
of the earth.
Yet we have broken that union;
It is fractured within us as well as between friends and
among nations.
Bring
us to a time of stillness
That we may see your face in all our neighbors
And hear your voice through all creation.
Give
us the courage to turn toward your healing love.
Show us how to mend the disputes of our days;
Bring all nations back to a desire for your peace.
We
thank you, O God, our Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier,
For the longing of our hearts to live in you.
—
Sally Witt, CSJ
God
of Great Love,
We commit ourselves to living
in the most sincere, true and profound humility
so that we might give voice
to your gospel of peace.
Empower
us with your grace of union and reconciliation
so that we might be impelled to give our whole lives
for those deprived of bread, peace and love
Allow
us the courage to give voice to the cries of the poor,
to the terror of those at war,
to the humiliation of the many who are disenfranchised.
May
your healing and unifying love flow through us in such a
way
that it honors every neighbor on Earth, without distinction,
in a manner that glorifies you as the
Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier of all life.
Amen.
—
Lyn Szymkiewicz, CSJ
Jesus
Crucified, reminds us . . .
Jesus
Crucified,
reminds us
of the brutality and harshness
of a world torn apart
by oppression and violence
war making and drug taking
murders, abuse and hate
jealousy, revenge and greed
LORD, HAVE MERCY
Jesus Crucified
remind us
of our commitment to peace,
in our country, for all countries
so that all over the world
people may sit at round tables
to talk — and to listen —
to the sounds of the earth.
CHRIST, HAVE MERCY
Jesus Crucified
reminds all of us
of our call to unity
one with each other
and all with God —
a call to transformation
to a free and creative response
to life, to peace
to nonviolence.
LORD, HAVE MERCY
Jesus Crucified
remind us —
each of us —
of our own vulnerability
of our need to disarm ourselves
so we can hear the voice of the oppressor
as well as the oppressed-
so we can be less defensive
and more willing to hear
the other’s piece of the truth.
CHRIST, HAVE MERCY.
May we — and all —
and all together
grow daily in reverence of the truth
in our desire to know — to speak — to live it
until we — and all
are gentled with peace
and afire with love!
Then let us proclaim the full message of
Jesus Crucified and Raised —
We are an Easter people
Alleluia is our Song!
—
Ruth Bearer, CSJ
Over
the past months, the Sisters of St. Joseph all over our
nation and throughout the world have been speaking in opposition
to war in Iraq. We have been responding in diverse ways:
speaking, writing, teaching, marching, preaching — witnessing
to the unity of all creation and the dignity of every human
person.
As Sisters of St. Joseph we believe that we are One. In the spirit of our charism of unity and reconciliation, we urge our Sisters, associates, colleagues and friends to continue the wonderful variety of efforts on behalf of peace, and to pray the
following common prayer together in the days ahead.
We invite you to also say this prayer daily at noon if possible and in the event of any escalation of violence or outbreak of hostility. In this way, may we raise our common voice to the God who loves us, draw strength from our unity, and come closer to the peace for which we pray.
O
God, we turn to you
in the terror of the night
and in the darkness of our days.
We
bring the cries of Mother Earth
and the tears of all her children.
Today we pray especially for …
Pierce us with your grace
that we might be the community
of your great love,
Bearing your light
Being your peace.
Our prayers and actions for peace and justice join those of the international community. Together, we can make the world a safer place for all children to live and dream.
