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God of
justice, God of peace, we your children humbly come before you on behalf of a
broken and beautiful world, seeking grace, seeking courage, seeking
transformation. Things are not right in the United States of America, O God. Of
course, they have never been quite right in this place. We are a nation founded
through oppression. We are a people who have inherited the sins of racism,
classism, sexism, and violence from our ancestors. And we are a people who
gather here today to say, “Enough. We have had enough.”
Show us what
to do, O God. Who and how to be. Teach us your ways. Help us to listen. Help us
to act. Help us to break free from the evils of oppression so that we can truly
– and finally – be free.
It has been
11 days, O Holy Parent, since the child of Leslie McSpadden and Michael Brown,
Sr. - your child - was shot by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. God, we join with
Michael Brown’s parents in grieving the loss no parent should have to face. We
know that you, too, know the anguish of losing a child. We weep for the life
that was cut short. We speak out against the assassination of this young man’s
character as irrelevant charges are levied against him in the media. And we
stand firm and demand a full and impartial investigation. O, God, let justice
be done.
We remember
also that this is no isolated incident. We remember your other children who
have been victims of police and vigilante violence. We remember Jordan Davis, Tarika Wilson, Amadou
Diallo, Rekia Boyd, Sean Bell, Yvette Smith, Trayvon Martin, and so many
more. We trust, O Knowing One, that you know all of the names, even when we do
not. Help us to remember that names matter. Help us to learn and teach these
names.
Of course,
violence does not happen in a vacuum. We pray, also, for Officer Darren Wilson.
We know in our hearts that no officer wakes up and hopes to go to work and
shoot another human being. We pray for Wilson’s safety and that he receives
a fair investigation and trial. We pray that he is receiving the mental and
spiritual support he needs at this time. And we give thanks for the law
enforcement officials who are working to change the
system. Be with all who have pledged to protect and serve and help them to do
the job they have promised to do.
As night
grows near, we pray for that peace and justice may soon be found on the streets
of Ferguson. We stand with Dr. King in recognizing that peace without justice
is hollow – a nothing kind of promise. God of Justice, breathe your spirit upon
the local, state, and federal officials in Ferguson and help them to know this
is true. Help them to open their ears, eyes, and heart. Help them to see the
people in Ferguson as you do – as beloved co-creators in bringing about your
Realm, as people who deserve to be heard, as people who have a right to be
angry.
Finally, O
God in Community, we give you thanks for the privilege of joining together in
prayer. We give thanks that you are with us on the journey ahead. We give
thanks that you are always working for a better day, that you have a vision of
what we can become, and that you tirelessly and relentlessly urge us to be
bearers of your good news to a hurting world. Give us strength, O God of Power.
Give us grace, O God of Mercy. Give us tenacity and determination, for we know
this is a marathon and not a sprint. We ask all these things through Jesus
Christ, who himself was a victim of violence. Amen.
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