Two Prayers after the violence in AZ
Be praised, my Lord, through those who forgive for love of you;
through those who endure sickness and trial.
Happy those who endure in peace,
for by you, Most High, they will be crowned.
Be praised, my Lord, through our Sister Bodily Death,
from whose embrace no living person can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin!
Happy those she finds doing your most holy will.
The second death can do no harm to them.
Praise and bless my Lord, and give thanks,
and serve him with great humility.
Canticle of Brother Sun, St. Francis of Assisi
Keep us, O God, from all pettiness;
let us be large in thought, in word, in deed.
Let us be done with fault-finding
and leave off all self-seeking.
May we put away all pretense
and meet each other face-to-face,
without self-pity and without prejudice.
May we never be hasty in judgment,
and always generous.
Let us always take time for all things,
and make us grow calm, serene, and gentle.
Teach us to put into action our better impulses,
to be straightforward and unafraid.
Grant that we may realize
that it is the little things of life that create differences,
that in the big things of life, we are as one.
And, O God, let us not forget to be kind!
Attributed to Queen Mary Stuart.
This prayer is being distributed by Pax Christi, USA, in response to the shooting in Arizona.
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Thank you, David. I needed this prayer.
Amen, and amen.
Might I also suggest the last stanza of the Veni Sancte Spiritus:
Da virtutis meritum,
da salutis exitum,
da perenne gaudium,
Grant us due reward;
a grace-filled end.
Grant us ceaseless joy.
I often pray these three lines when I hear that someone has passed away. Pardon my poor translation.
The prayer of Mary Queen of Scots is especially appropriate at this time of sorrow and tragedy. Although Queen Mary is often depicted as a villain, one might also consider her a tragic character. She condoned great violence and died under this same great violence. With that in mind, it is important to pray not only for those who were murdered, but also the gunman. This tragedy also reminds us that all of us must play a part in reaching out to the troubled before they are able to commit grave crime.
A murder creates both a victim and a murderer.
“…it is important to pray not only for those who were murdered, but also the gunman.”
This is the first sensible and Christian thing I’ve read about this—my own writing included.
Bless you!
Sam
Thank you, Jordan, for having the courage to publicly call for prayers for the gunman. Our obsession with revenge and retribution means that far too often, praying for evil doers is equated with siding with them.