Lamenting Prejudices

Lamenting our Prejudices 

With anguish of heart we acknowledge before us and before You, our God, the ugly reality we see unfolding yet again. With bitterness of soul we remember the sins of the past, of our ancestors, fathers, mothers, ourselves. We have indeed sinned in word and deed against heaven and earth.

We lament before you, Righteous Father, for all the wrongful treatment of other humans made in the image of God.

            Lord, have mercy! Christ have mercy! 

We lament before our Beautiful Savior for all words and deeds that diminish the image of God in every soul to an object for exploitation.

            Lord, have mercy! Christ have mercy!

We lament before our gentle Holy Spirit for the abuses of our past against men and women of color bought and sold as beasts of labor.

We lament before our Lamenting God at those who remain captives to prejudice.

            Set us all free, O Lord, from the strong grip of injustice.

We lament before our suffering Savior at the long chain of pain that still shackles the children of God to the color of their skin.

Set us all free, O Lord, from the centuries-long rope of sorrow and despair.

We lament bitterly at the loss of every life, dream and hope of generations of people awaiting the deliverance of God.

            Set us all free, O Lord! Restore unto us the dignity of the spark of divinity in all people.

Deliver us O Lord from our own broken spirits.

Deliver children from the weight of more unbearable loss.

Keep bitterness from nesting.

Thwart hatred with your love.

We repent before Almighty God of injuring others with our remarks, with deeds that do not become the followers of Jesus. May he who spoke these words help us to live them out with repentance, courage and confidence.

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." Luke 4:18-19

Until the day heaven and earth be one, we hope in the Great Exchange of grief, tears, injustice, prejudice, division and hatred, with the pervading presence of loving God and loving others.