O bountiful and merciful God: you have blessed your people with great prophets and leaders to advance the cause of equality under law in this nation and in the world. By their teaching and preaching; by their action and example; by their marching, demonstrating, and sitting in; by their organizing, praying and singing, they have made themselves and the dream of non-discrimination impossible for opponents to ignore and possible for those marginalized to dream. Give us such leaders always, Lord. Let the cry for justice always be heard in our land until, by your gracious will, your children live together in freedom, justice, and equality.
Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia
A Prayer Concerning Voting Rights in the United States
God, we thank you for our great nation. Thank you for the liberties we have through our Constitution. Thank you for the right to vote. Thank you for giving us the wisdom, discernment and knowledge to vote intelligently.
Despite this God, there have been grievous acts of injustice and unrighteousness in our nation regarding voting rights. That is why we call on you to help us we stand up against these injustices. We ask you to support our work of resisting the spirits of pride, division, confusion, hatred and deception that have been taken to keep American citizens from voting.
Holy Spirit, help every voter to understand the importance of voting in our elections. Empower our citizens to overcome the barriers that have been set to make voting more difficult in our country, including requiring unnecessary forms of identification and voter fraud. God, turn the hearts of lawmakers, judges, and attorneys towards justice and righteousness. Help them to be fair and not discriminate against others because of party politics and personal agendas. Transform the hearts of those who have created voter suppression laws that will impact students, people of color and older Americans. Help us to reverse actions that have been committed with malicious intent
God, forgive us as a nation for all our sins of injustice. Forgive those who endorse corruption in our political system. Forgive judges, lawmakers and leaders who are trying to manipulate the election for their own selfish purposes. Forgive those who have taken the law into their own hands instead of relying upon you to guide them. Forgive those persons who take bribes and give preferential treatment. Holy Spirit, remind us of all those we need to forgive and help us to be quick to forgive.
Amen
A Prayer for Our Community
Source of All Being, Creator of All Life, may Your goodness find its way into the hearts of all Your children.
May those who wield power do so with a balance of wisdom, justice and compassion. May those who feel powerless remember their intrinsic worth, and also act with a balance of wisdom, integrity and compassion.
May we all feel called to action based on the injustices of racism, and see ourselves not as enemies of one another, not in struggle with one another, but as human beings, created in the image of God, connected to one another’s well-being.
May all of us come to acknowledge the racism that is pervasive in our region and our nation.
May we commit to sitting down with one another in honest dialogue, opening our hearts in compassion to one another, bearing witness to the pain and fear of one another, even if … and especially if … “the other” looks and seems so different from ourselves.
May we commit to joining together in acts of justice that will bring about equality in education, economic opportunities, law enforcement and judicial proceedings.
May each of us come to understand that, ultimately, “my” experience of freedom, justice and peace is inextricably linked to the freedom, justice and peace of every other person in our county and city, our country and our world. May we open our eyes to the invisible lines of connection that unite us, and with clarity of vision, continue to work for a world where every person’s life is valued, cherished and loved.
Amen.
Rabbi Andrea Goldstein