(Leader’s
Copy)
Prayer Vigil for
Peace
Opening
Song:
Suggestions – “God of Day and God of Darkness”
“In Christ There Is No East or West”
“We Are Many Parts”
Leader: As members of one human family created by a loving God, we have come together today to pray for peace in our
world. We live in the midst of a world
that is marked by fear, hatred, and violence, but as the spiritual writer Henri
Nouwen once wrote:
“The spiritual life keeps us aware that our true house is not the house
of fear, in which the powers of hatred and violence rule, but the house of
love, where God resides. Hardly a day
passes in our lives without our experience of inner or outer fears, anxieties,
apprehensions and preoccupations. These
dark powers have pervaded every part of our world to such a degree that we can
never fully escape them. Still it is
possible not to belong to these powers, not to build our dwelling place among
them, but to choose the house of love as our home.” (Behold the Beauty of the Lord: Praying With Icons by
Henri Nouwen, p. 19)
Let us listen to how the
words of Scripture call us to choose the house of love as our home.
(Pause a few seconds between
each Scripture quote. Sing verses of “Peace Is Flowing Like
a River” as indicated.)
Voice 1: “The
Voice 2: “The harvest of justice is sown in peace for
those who cultivate peace.” (James 3:18)
Sing: Peace is flowing like a river…
Voice 3: “You have heard the commandment, ‘You shall
love your countryman but hate your enemy.’ My command to you is: love your enemies, pray for your
persecutors.” (Matt. 5:43-44)
Voice 4:
“Never repay injury with injury. See that your
conduct is honorable in the eyes of all.
If possible, live peaceably with everyone.” (Romans 12:17-18)
Sing: Love is flowing like a river…
Voice 5: “Be Compassionate, as your Father is
compassionate. Do not judge,
and you will not be judged. Do not
condemn, and you will not be condemned. Pardon, and you shall be pardoned. Give, and it shall
be given to you. Good measure pressed
down, shaken together, running over, will they pour into the fold of your
garment. For the measure you measure
with will be measured back to you.”
(Luke 6:36-38)
Voice 6: “Blessed are the peacemakers; they shall be called
children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
Sing: Healing’s flowing
like a river…
Reflection: (Suggestions – Use the
Dialogue: Have open microphone for participants to
respond, or invite participants to choose a partner and share responses to
questions:
Leader: In the Book of Genesis, we read that God looked at all of creation and declared it to be
good. The world that God intended for us
is a world where each person is given the dignity befitting one made in the
image and likeness of God, and all of creation is
looked upon with love. Let us reflect on
what this world would be like as we listen to the words of “The New Genesis” by
Robert Muller.
Reader: Please respond by saying “It is good,” each time you hear “And God said.”
And God saw that all nations
of the Earth, black and white, poor and rich, from North and South, from East
and West, and of all creeds, were sending their emissaries to study together,
to think together, and to care together for the world and all its people…And
God said,
Response: It is good.
Reader: And God saw that humans were loving the whole
Creation, the stars and the sun, the day and the night, the air and the oceans,
the earth and the waters, the fish and the fowl, the flowers and the herbs, and
all their human sisters and brothers…And God said,
Response: It is good.
Reader: And God saw that humans were suppressing
hunger, disease, ignorance and suffering all over the globe, providing each
human person with a decent, conscious and happy life, and reducing the greed,
the power and the wealth of the few…And God Said,
Response:
It is good.
Reader: And God saw that humans were living in
harmony with their planet and in peace with one another, wisely managing their
resources, avoiding waste, curbing excesses, replacing hatred with love, greed
with contentment, arrogance with humility, division with cooperation, and
mistrust with understanding…And God said,
Response: It is good.
Reader: And God saw that soldiers of peace were
separating the combatants of quarreling nations, that differences were being
resolved by negotiation and reason instead of arms, and that the leaders of nations
were seeing each other, talking to each other and joining their hearts, minds,
souls, and strength for the benefit of all humanity…And God said,
Response: It is good.
Reader: And God saw that people were destroying their arms, bombs,
missiles, warships and warplanes, dismantling their bases, and disbanding their
armies…And God said,
Response: It is good.
Reader: And God saw humans changing their
institutions, beliefs, politics, governments and all human entities to be
servants of God and the people. And God
saw them adopt as their supreme law, “You shall love God with all your heart,
all your soul, all your mind and all your
strength. You shall love your neighbor
as yourself. There is no greater
commandment than these.”…And God said,
Response: It is good.
Leader: Let us ask the God of Peace to help us make this New
Genesis a reality by granting us our heartfelt petitions.
Reader: Please respond, God of Peace, hear our prayer.
1) For our world leaders that they will turn away from
war and work to negotiate diplomatic solutions to bring about lasting peace in
2) For our Church leaders that they will follow the
wisdom of the Spirit in guiding us toward a world that reflects the justice and
love of the
3) For those who seek hatred and revenge that they may
be transformed by the Spirit to follow the way of compassion and forgiveness,
we pray…
4) For all those who are living in the midst of violence
and turmoil, that they might find comfort and hope through our efforts for
peace, we pray…
5) For all of us here that we may have the courage to
accept our roles as instruments of God’s peace, promoting respect and dignity
for all of life, we pray…
Leader: Let us pray together.
All: Loving Creator, grant us the peace that we need in
our hearts in order to spread your peace in our world. Help us to be witnesses of truth, justice,
and love. Enlighten our government
leaders that they may wage peace and not war.
May the peace we so long for become a reality for all peoples. We ask this through your son, Jesus Christ,
the Prince of Peace. Amen.
Closing Song:
Suggestions - “Prayer
of St. Francis”
“For
the Healing”
Prepared by the Cleveland Diocesan
Education and Training Center for Social Justice.
330-535-2787/ 1-888-620-5280
Acknowledgment: “The New Genesis” by Robert Muller (adapted)
from The
Way of Peace, Pax Christi