MLK Untitled Prayer 04

“O God, the Creator and Presever of all mankind; In whom to dwell is to find peace and security; toward whom to turn is to find life and life eternal, we humbly beseech Thee for all sorts and conditions of men; that thou wouldst be pleased to make thy ways known unto them, Thy saving health unto all nations. We also pray for Thy holy Church universal; that it may be so guided and governed by thy Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the [land?] of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally we commend to thy Fatherly goodness all those who are in any way afflicted or distressed in mind or body. Give them patience under the suffering and power of endurance This we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.”

• Taken from a short collection in the King Papers simply called “Prayers” and available here.

MLK Untitled Prayer 03

“Most Gracious and all wise God; Before whose face the generations rise and fall; Thou in whom we live, and move, and have our being.6 We thank thee [for?] all of thy good and gracious gifts, for life and for health; for food and for raiment; for the beauties of nature and the love of human nature. We come before thee painfully aware of our inadaqucis and shortcomigs. We realize that we stand surrounded with the mountains of love and we deliberately dwell in the valley of hate. We stand amid the forces of truth and deliberately lie; We are forever offered the high road and yet we choose the lo to travel the low road. For these sins O God forgive. Break the spell of that which blinds our minds. Purify our hearts that we may see thee. O God in these turbulent day when fear and doubt are mounting high give us broad visions, penetrating eys, and power of endurance. Help us to work with rewed vigor for a warless world, for a better distribution of wealth, and for a brotherhood that transcends race or color. In the name and spirit of Jesus we pray. Amen.”

• Taken from a short collection in the King Papers simply called “Prayers” and available here.

MLK Untitled Prayer 02

“O God our eternal Father, we praise thee for gifts of mind with which thou hast endowed us. We are able to rise out of the half-realities of the sense world to a world of ideal beauty and eternal truth. Teach us, we pray Thee, how to use this great gift of reason and imagination so that it shall not be a curse but a blessing. Grant us visions that shall lift us [strikeout illegible] from worldiness and sin into the light of thine own holy presence. Through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.”

• Taken from a short collection in the King Papers simply called “Prayers” and available here.

MLK Untitled Prayer 01

“O thou Eternal God, out of whose absolute power and infinite intelligence the whole universe has come into being. We humbly confess that we have not loved thee with our hearts, souls and minds and we have not loved our neighbors as Christ loved us.4 We have all too often lived by our own selfish impulses rather than by the life of sacrificial love as revealed by Christ. We often give in order to receive, we love our friends and hate our enimies, we go the first mile but dare not travel the second, we forgive but dare not forget.5 And so as we look within ourselves we are confronted with the appalling fact that the history of our lives is the history of an eternal revolt against thee. But thou, O God, have mercy upon us. Forgive us for what we could have been but failed to be. Give us the intelligence to know thy will. Give us the courage to do thy will. Give us the devotion to love thy will. In the name and spirit of Jesus we pray. Amen.”

• Taken from a short collection in the King Papers simply called “Prayers” and available here.

Because They Couldn't Breathe, We Cannot Be Silent (A Responsive Reading For George Floyd and Others)

This responsive reading was inspired by the following Tweet from Latasha Morrison:

Because I can breathe, I don’t want another person to die at the hands of police brutality because they can’t breathe. What will you do with the breath in your body?

Creating, Sustaining, and Saving God,
Hear us in these heavy times
because it feels like no one else does.

People of God take heart, for the Scriptures tell us:

“God hears the hearts of the afflicted;
He encourages them and listens to their cries,
He defends the fatherless and the oppressed,
so that people will no longer terrorize us”
(Psalm 10:17-18)

How long?
How long, O Lord?

People of God take heart, for the Scriptures tells us:

“everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”
(Joel 2:32)

How long?
How long, O Lord?

I don’t know.

It feels too long.

I know.

It feels too heavy.

People of God take heart, for the Scriptures tells us:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
(Matthew 11:28-30)

But it doesn’t feel that way.
The oppression feels too heavy.
Another video.
Another life taken by authority

By those who are supposed to protect

People of God take heart, God has word for you:

“Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless.”
(Isaiah 10:1-2)

But it keeps happening:

Alton Sterling
Tamir Rice
Trayvon Martin
Philando Castile
Eric Garner
Bothem Sean
Breonna Taylor
Amaud Arbery
George Floyd

And so many more.

Live cut short

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality,
tied in a single garment of destiny.
Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
(Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from the Birmingham Jail)

Creating, Sustaining, and Saving God,
Remind us of our mutuality

Their suffering is our suffering

George Floyd couldn’t breathe.

But we can.

Eric Garner couldn’t breathe.

But we can.

So what will we do with our breath?

Remind ourselves that it is a gift.

And gifts are not to be wasted.

We will use our breath to speak for the voiceless.
We will use our breath to cry with the afflicted.

Because they could not breathe,
we cannot be silent.

God, you promised to cast down the mighty
and we don’t know how much longer we can wait.

Because they could not breathe,
we cannot be silent.

God, give us the courage to lead with love,
to challenge unjust systems
and to name the national sin of racism.

Because they could not breathe,
we cannot be silent.

Because they could not breathe,
we will not be silent.

Prayer For Love (1 Corinthians 13)

Gracious, Heavenly Creator and Sustainer,
We confess that we do not love as we ought.
We love ourselves more than you
and more than our neighbors.

We cling to our opinions as truths
and we feed the politics of division,
hungry for power and full of comfort.

Wake us from our slumber, Gracious God.

You tell us in the Scriptures that

If we speak in the tongues of men or angels,
but do not have love,

We are nothing more than resounding gongs or clanging cymbals.
God, turn our noise into music.

If we have the gift of prophecy or can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge,
and if we have faith that can move mountains,
but do not have love,

We are nothing.
God, remind us that no one cares how much we know until they know how much we care.

If we give all we possess to the poor,
and give our bodies to hardship that we may boast,
but do not have love,

We gain nothing.

God, help us to listen to you. For you have told us what Love is like:

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,
it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.

God, help us to be people made and shaped by Love.
God, help us to make your priorities our own.
For where there are prophecies,
they will cease;
where there are tongues,
they will be stilled;
where there is knowledge,
it will pass away.

For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.

When we were children, we talked like children,
We thought like children and reasoned like children.

But as we matured, we put they ways of childhood behind us.

For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror,
but someday we will see face to face.

For now, we only understand in part
But someday we will know fully,
even as we are known.

And now, these three remain: faith, hope, and love.
But the greatest of these is love.

Gracious God, we give ourselves to You,
to be remade in the image of Love.
We ask for the power of the Holy Spirit
that we may be transformed into your image.

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

Amen.

Augustine's Prayer For Self-Knowledge

“Lord Jesus, let me know myself and know You,
and desire nothing save only You.
Let me hate myself and love You.
Let me do everything for the sake of You.
Let me humble myself and exalt You.
Let me think of nothing except You.
Let me die to myself and live in You.
Let me accept whatever happens as from You.
Let me banish self and follow You, and ever desire to follow You.
Let me fly from myself and take refuge in You,
That I may deserve to be defended by You.
Let me fear for myself.
Let me fear You, and let me be among those who are chosen by You.
Let me distrust myself and put my trust in You.
Let me be willing to obey for the sake of You.
Let me cling to nothing save only to You,
And let me be poor because of You.
Look upon me, that I may love You.
Call me that I may see You, and for ever enjoy You.
Amen.”

Prayer Of Commendation

I am nearly finished with my first unit of Clinical Pastoral Education, where I have had the opportunity to serve as a Hospital Chaplain Intern.

The other day, I was called to perform “Last Rites” for a patient. Upon arriving to the room, I discovered that the patient was already deceased. After informing the family that 01: The Roman Catholic tradition only performs rites for the living, and, quite relevant, 02: I am not Roman Catholic and couldn’t do it even if it were such a thing. They said neither were they; they just wanted someone to perform a prayer.

I looked for a non-Roman Catholic Prayer of Commendation and couldn’t quite find what I was looking for, so I wrote one. It’s a little long for what I’d like to use it for and I will probably make some edits, or rewrite it completely, but I thought I’d pass it along in its current form if anyone’s interested (feel free to use and edit as helps you).

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Saving and Sustaining Creator; 
hear us as we gather
in the quiet remembrance of death.
From dust we came
and to dust we shall return. 
As our dear one has departed this realm,
some day, so shall we.

Creator who saves, and sustains,
help us make the most our days. 
May we carry your blessing of Love to all we meet,
for our days our few and the needs are many
Show us that Your Love sustains.

We commend our dear sister/brother ____________ to the journey ahead,
To them we say:

may you return to the God who formed you, 
may the angels and the saints; 
all those who have gone ahead
guide you as you go forth from this life to the next. 

Dear sister/brother ____________
May the God who created, saves, and sustains,
bring you freedom from your suffering, 
and peace of spirit,
welcome you with open arms 
into the garden of paradise, 

and may you hear those words we all long to hear:
“Well done, my good and faithful servant,”
Find your rest in that heavenly home
where there is no more disease,
no more sickness,
no more sadness,
no more tears,
and no more suffering; 
remember us as you take your place in the eternal.”

Creating, Saving, and Sustaining God, 
guide this dear one and us to our eternal home,
Give us the courage to continue our lives in sacrifice for others,
following the path of peace,
guided by Love. 

We pray with humble confidence
knowing our shortcomings
and your abundant mercies. 

Hear our prayers, 
guide our hands, 
heal our hearts. 
Amen.

A Prayer For Justice From The United Church of Christ

“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.”

(taken from the United Church of Christ “Prayers” page)

Prayer For Social Justice From The Episcopal Church (Book Of Common Prayer)

“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.”

(From the Book of Common Prayer as read by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry)

• See/hear/download other prayers as read by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry at the official Episcopal Church website.

• Purchase the Book of Common Prayer at Amazon.

A Prayer For Resurrection Sunday

“Almighty God,
who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ
overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life:
Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord's resurrection,
may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Amen.”

---

• Found in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer

---

Prayer In Time Of Epidemic (1951 Lutheran Book Of Prayer)

Heavenly Father,
We beseech Thee to turn from me and fellow citizens the destruction and terror of this epidemic.
I pray Thee,
stay the hand of the Angel of Death
as he proceeds from dwelling to dwelling.

I ask Thee, above all, to draw me closer to Thee
as Thy chastening rod afflicts us.
Grief-stricken and fearful,
may we not despair of Thy mercies.

Grant me the grace in humble repentance
and sincere faith to look to Thee,
who turns all things to the good of them that Love Thee.

Grant the necessary wisdom and success
to those who strive to stem the tide of afflication,
and quicken our hearts to bear the burdens of one another’s grief and need.

Lord, in Thy mercy save us.

I am mindful of my many shortcomings and transgressions.
Blot them out that I may find peace
and rest for my soul.
Make me sure of my salvation through Thy Word.
Then give healing and relief
according to Thy good will in Christ Jesus,
our Lord and Redeemer.

Amen.

(taken from the 1951 Lutheran Book of Prayer)

"A Prayer from Apollo 8 for Universal Peace"

On Christmas Day (25 December 1968), astronaut Frank Borman broadcast the following prayer from Apollo 8*:

“Give us, O God, the vision which can see Your love in the world in spite of human failure.
Give us the faith to trust Your goodness in spite of our ignorance and weakness.
Give us the knowledge that we may continue to pray with understanding hearts.
And show us what each one of us can do to set forward the coming of the day of universal peace.
Amen.”

*(taken from the “Justice Prayers” section of Xavier.edu’s “Jesuit Resources” page)

A Prayer for World Peace, 1978

“We pray for the power to be gentle;
the strength to be forgiving;
the patience to be understanding;
and the endurance to accept the consequences
of holding on to what we believe to be right.

May we put our trust in the power of good to overcome evil and the power of love to overcome hatred.”

We pray for the vision to see and the faith to believe in a world emancipated from violence,
a new world where fear shall no longer lead men or women to commit injustice,
nor selfishness make them bring suffering to others.

Help us to devote our whole life and thought and energy
to the task of making peace,
praying always for the inspiration and the power
to fulfill the destiny for which we and all men and women were created.

- Author Unknown, Offered by Beth Amyot

• Found at Xavier.edu // Jesuit Resource page.

A Jesuit Prayer For Peace

We are moulded, each one of us,
in the image of God,
and within our souls there is a fingerprint
none can erase.
We pray for those who have no regard
for anyone but self,
who put no value on human life.
For nations and individuals who abuse and kill.
We are not called to be judge or jury,
but we are called to be agents of change,
and if the butterfly that flaps its wings
should be our attitude to others
then so be it, Lord,
and may the hurricane this generates
somewhere within the world
reach into the hearts and souls of those
for whom we pray, and reveal to them
how precious are those
for whom they have no love,
and how precious are they
who now bring tears to the eyes of God.”

• Found at Xavier.edu // Jesuit Resource page.
  

A Prayer For Ash Wednesday (Psalm 51)

Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity
    and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
    and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth,
    sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
    you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins
    and blot out all my iniquity.

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
    so that sinners will turn back to you.
14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
    you who are God my Savior,
    and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 Open my lips, Lord,
    and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
    you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 My sacrifice, O God, is[b] a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart
    you, God, will not despise.

18 May it please you to prosper Zion,
    to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
    in burnt offerings offered whole;
    then bulls will be offered on your altar.”

A Prayer "For Courage to Do Justice"

“O Lord, open my eyes that I may see the needs of others

Open my ears that I may hear their cries;
Open my heart so that they need not be without succor;
Let me not be afraid to defend the weak because of the anger of the strong,
Nor afraid to defend the poor because of the anger of the rich.
Show me where love and hope and faith are needed,
And use me to bring them to those places.
And so open my eyes and my ears
That I may this coming day be able to do some work of peace for thee.”

- Alan Paton, South Africa, United Methodist Hymnal #456

Prayer For Peace From The Episcopal Church (Book Of Common Prayer)

“Almighty God,
kindle, we pray, in every heart
the true love of peace,
and guide with your wisdom
those who take counsel for the nations of the earth,
that in tranquillity your dominion may increase
until the earth is filled with the knowledge of your love;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.”

(From the Book of Common Prayer as read by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry)

• See/hear/download other prayers as read by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry at the official Episcopal Church website.

• Purchase the Book of Common Prayer at Amazon.

Prayer For Peace (From The Book of Common Prayer)

“O God, the Father of all,
whose Son commanded us to love our enemies:
Lead them and us from prejudice to truth:
deliver them and us from hatred,
cruelty, and revenge;
and in your good time
enable us all to stand reconciled before you,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.”

Douglas Kaine McKelvey Prays For Discernment

“Give us discernment
to know when to pray,
when to speak out,
when to act,
and when to simply
shut off our screens
and our devices,
and to sit quietly
in your presence,
casting the burdens of this world
upon the strong shoulders
of the one who
alone
is able to bear them up.”

– Douglas Kaine McKelvey, Every Moment Holy

• Visit Douglas Kaine McKelvey’s official website.

• Purchase Every Moment Holy by Douglas Kaine McKelvey at Amazon.