Speak and pray for Peace

Quiet Waters, Latvia photographed by my friend Andris Finks

If there is to be peace in the world,
There must be peace in the nations.
If there is to be peace in the nations,
There must be peace in the cities.
If there is to be peace in the cities,
There must be peace between neighbours.
If there is to be peace between neighbours,
There must be peace in the home.
If there is to be peace in the home,
There must be peace in the heart.

(Lao-Tse – 6th Century BCE)

A Prayer for the Middle East

God of mercy and compassion,
of grace and reconciliation,
pour your power upon all your children in the Middle East:
Jews, Muslims and Christians,
Palestinians and Israelis.
Let hatred be turned into love, fear to trust, despair to hope,
oppression to freedom, occupation to liberation,
that violent encounters may be replaced by loving embraces,
and peace and justice could be experienced by all.

– Reverend Said Ailabouni
Xavier University Cincinnati

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A prayer from Latvia for the people of Ukraine

“Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for the people of Ukraine, give them strength
and miraculous protection from the horrors of war.
I pray for the people of Russia, God,
to allow them to see the truth and to give them the courage to face the terrible regime. 
I pray for the people of Latvia and other countries,
give us open hearts and wisdom on how to help the victims of war.
I ask that there be unity and love among people,
that evil be destroyed, and that peace come,
so that more and more people may have the eternal peace
that only You can give.
All this I ask of you in the name of Jesus Christ, and for his merit. Amen”

A Hindu Peace Prayer

I desire neither earthly kingdom, nor even freedom from birth and death.
I desire only the deliverance from grief of all those afflicted by misery.
Oh Lord, lead us from the unreal to the real;
from darkness to light; from death to immortality.
May there be peace in celestial regions.
May there be peace on earth.
May the waters be appeasing.
May herbs be wholesome and may trees and plants bring peace to all.
May all beneficent beings bring peace to us.
May your wisdom spread peace all through the world.
May all things be a source of peace to all and to me.
Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti (Peace, peace, peace).

–M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence

Peace International Prayer

Lead me from Death to Life
from Falsehood to Truth
Lead me from Despair to Hope
from Fear to Trust
Lead me from Hate to Love
from War to Peace
Let Peace fill our Heart
our World, our Universe
Peace Peace Peace

Of Angels.

St. Michael ~ detail~ Statue carved by Josefina de Vasconcellos
~ first exhibited in Manchester Cathedral in the winter of 1991
~ now it is on permanent display in Cartmel Priory, in the Lake District.
photo by Mr. G.
Therefore with Angels and Archangels …

At almost every Eucharist Christians pray: “Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name.” The picture is of our being part of a great company, invisible but near, who worship Almighty God without ceasing. At this point in the Eucharist we are at what the Celts call a ‘thin place’ when the barrier between earth and heaven is opened to those who have faith to see it. That can be very helpful when we are missing departed loved ones but we are also reminded that our worship is caught up in a greater praise. We, as it were, plug in to a current of worship which is forever flowing and for ever being proclaimed. But for many, angels belong to myth and one wonders what is going through many Christian minds when they reach that point in the Eucharist. Despite the fact that Holy Scripture is crammed with references to angels and they play a significant part in the Christmas and Easter stories, it is easy to dismiss them.
It is also rather arrogant because it assumes that God who is the great creator of everything on earth, is incapable of creating any other order of being than we can actually see. Yet we continue to explore space for other forms of life—assuming, naturally, that what we will find will be ‘human’ life! As we seem to be making quite a mess of our own planet it might be better if we hoped any life form found might not be human! The writer of Psalm 8 praises creation and puts humanity in its place:

“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have ordained,
What are mortals that you should be mindful of them;
mere human beings, that you should seek them out?
You have made them little lower than the angels
and crown them with glory and honour.

Though human beings have dominion (or stewardship) of creation on earth we are ‘lower than’ angels. They have a special place in God’s scheme of things—as Defenders in the cosmic battle between good and evil; as messengers of God’s word to humanity as in the Annunciation; as healers and as guardians. Jesus himself spoke of angels in this way saying that God’s little ones have their Guardian angels and he, himself, knew of their ministrations at the end of his wilderness experience. If Jesus believes in angels, who are we to dispute their existence and their part in God’s plan?

[St Michael’s Day is September 29th]

[Mr G]

Equinox

Autumn Equinox Sunrise, Ryhope Beach. Photo by Craig Connor/ NewcastleChronicle

Tomorrow, September 22nd (at 1.43pm in Britain) the Autumn Equinox begins. Here’s a note from the British Meteorological Office followed by a Personal reflection

The Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere occurs twice a year around 20 March (the spring equinox) and around 22 September (the autumn equinox). They occur between the summer and winter solstices marking the point the Sun crosses the equator’s path and becomes positioned exactly above the equator between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere. During the equinox, day and night will be around the same length which is evident in the word’s origin derived from the Latin equi (meaning ‘equal’) and nox (meaning ‘night’).
The autumn equinox marks the start of autumn as the night becomes longer than the day.

(From the Met Office)

EQUINOX
The Sun poised over the equator
heralds the day of equal light; equal darkness.
Earth catches her breath in a moment of cosmic stillness,
bringing to mind the delicate balance of solar existence,
of which we are but a small part.
Seasons turn in an astronomical process  in which our human participation is not required.
We are the result of a divine plan, 
of an eternal equality over which we have no control.
This global moment is our reminder that in our vast, unfathomable universe
we are of little significance.
Yet, in the heart of our Creator God,
we are loved and held because of another Equinox,
not on the equator but on Calvary,
where darkness  became light and a new direction was shown to the world.
It is called The Sacrifice of God’s Love for us.
Together, with all on earth we are invited to embrace it.

[Mr G. amended 22nd Sept 2024]