We light a candle for you, O God, and pray for your eternal soul
as you sit helplessly in mourning to see the deaths of your people.
May there be mercy at the final judgment
when they question your unresponsiveness
to the cries of those battered by storms.
We light a candle for you, O God, and offer forgiveness
for your contributions to narcissism and rape culture.
We pray that you find a way to redress the harm
caused by your holy complicity in the power-driven,
hyper-masculine, self-centered, white savior complex.
We light a candle for you, O God, and join you in litany
to name the countless children dead from war’s turmoil.
It will be hard for you to hear their names
— your own flesh and blood and heart —
but we will sit with you in ash & sackcloth.
We light a candle for you, O God, and pray that you’ll find
good news in the streets and camps of protest movements.
May you see new expressions of the gospel in word and deed;
may you have the humility to learn from those who no longer
wait for you to create a new day but march for it themselves.
We light a candle for you, O God, and extend our prayers
for your wrestling and renewal, your hope and salvation.
cross-posted at RevGalBlogPals