Scripture Reading                      Acts 5:30-32 

Response:            A Litany of Unity and Hope

Reader:

God, Creator of our world and its peoples

Give us strength and faith to undertake the journeys to which you call us.

          Help us to grow in love and understanding of our sisters and brothers

            around the world,

So that together, we may cherish and protect the beautiful planet you have given us.

We ask this in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, our Master and our Friend.  Amen.

A Litany of Unity and Hope, by Karen Senecal

        Based on the Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad*

One:        "What actions are most excellent? To gladden the heart of a human being, to feed the hungry,     to help the afflicted, to lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful, and to remove the wrongs of the injured."

ALL:        We acknowledge that we have been tempted to seek only our own good, hear only our own truth, and acknowledge only our own suffering.  Let us start along the road to justice and peace by holding the pain of our sisters and brothers as if it were our own. We pray that no more children are lost to indifference and violence.

One:        "Kindness is a mark of faith, and whoever has not kindness has not faith."

ALL:         We pray for the courage to transform this beautiful planet into a place where people are not tormented by wars and not torn apart in senseless divisions. Together we will find the strength to resist hatred by our caring. Help us remember that it is our hands that shape the earth.

One:        "The exercise of religious duties will not atone for the fault of an abusive tongue."

ALL:        We pray, without ceasing, that our words become actions that give life the shape of justice.

One:        "God is a unity and likes unity."

ALL:        Help all persons to be able to not merely see the similarities between all people, but to feel less fear in the differences. If this can be our focus, perhaps our goal may be not for sameness, but for a true and joyful diversity.

One:        "Anyone of you who sees wrong, let him undo it with his hand; and if he cannot, then let him speak against it with his tongue; and if he cannot do this either, then let him abhor it with his heart, and this is the least of faith."

ALL:        Every human life is precious to God and the human community. Each human path of faith is a sacred journey within life.

One:        "He is true who protects his brother or sister both present and absent."

ALL:          We pray for our sisters and brothers who have no sense of safety in their daily lives. We consider the hatred we witness and participate unwittingly in, and we pray for more than fear and intolerance to dominate people's thoughts and motivation in these trying days.

Please Add Your Own Prayers…………..

Concluding Prayer

Almighty, ever-living God, you offer the covenant of reconciliation to humankind in the mystery of Easter. Grant that what we celebrate in worship we may carry out in our lives. We make our prayer through Our Lord, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God for ever and ever.

*The words read by the liturgist are taken from A Collection of Sound Hadith (sayings of the Prophet) on Nonviolence, Peace, Justice, and Other Subjects complied from reliable sources by Dr. Hafiz Syed and edited by Kabir Helminski

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About This Litany. This litany was written in the week after September 11, 2001, by the Rev. Karen Senecal for use by the congregation of Judson Memorial Church, New York City, which is located in Greenwich Village not far from the site of the World Trade Center. It was used again in a Service of Lamentation held on March 20, 2003, the day after the start of the Iraq war. The collection of hadith was contributed by Sufi Shaikh Kabir Helminski, cofounder of the Threshold Society, via SpiritualityHealth.com and Sufism.org.

Br. Eddy Coupe (St. Mary's, England)