08/04/2019
EDITED FOR DAYTON. Multiple mass shootings have occurred in recent weeks, this week, on two consecutive days. 250 so far this year. The pace is accelerating. We must also accelerate the pace of our actions against the scourge of gun violence.
Holy One, we pray to you in this moment of deepest despair to comfort the suffering in Dayton, El Paso, in San Francisco, in Brooklyn, in Southaven, Mississippi, in Los Angeles, in Wisconsin, in every corner of this world that suffers from the aftermath and the ongoing threat of random and devastating gun violence.
Please God, forgive our inaction. Give us the will to solve this problem, to stop normalizing this problem, to hold ourselves and our elected officials accountable for allowing gun violence to continue. In your mercy, hear our prayer.
Please God, forgive our inaction. Give us balm to heal the broken bodies of those who have been grievously injured and the broken hearts of those who have lost loved ones, family members, and children to gun violence. In your mercy, hear our prayer.
Please God, forgive our inaction. Give us compassion for those who become capable of such heinous acts of extreme violence and the tools to address the root causes of such acts of violence. In your mercy, hear our prayer.
Please God, forgive our inaction. Give us strength to do the work, to go about our daily rounds in this life without fear and with courage and conviction to take action. In your mercy, hear our prayer.
Please God, forgive our inaction. Give us wisdom to understand and end our idolatrous relationship with guns. In your mercy, hear our prayer.
Lead us, Holy One, and walk with us in our work for change. Walk with us to turn our anger, our fear, and your love into action.
In the Mighty Name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.
