A Prayer Vigil for Peace in Ukraine

A Prayer Vigil for Peace in Ukraine

“We pray that the lives of innocents, and the lives of any human child of God, will be spared. We pray that leaders will find a diplomatic way—a nonviolent solution. But we don’t know how to pray as we ought, and so the Spirit must intercede for us at this time.”

The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church USA

St. John’s Episcopal Church 3000 Washington Blvd, Huntington, WV 304.525.9105

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A letter from The Rt. Rev. Mark D. W. Edington Bishop in Charge The Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe The Episcopal Church has been in Europe for more than two hundred years. Our churches haveseen Europe’s wars unfold. They’ve lived and endured in the midst of the destruction and depravity that war brings.

Our parish here in Paris set up a field hospital during France’s war with Prussia in 1870 thattreated wounded soldiers. Our parish in Munich created a clinic during World War I that treated wounded German soldiers and fed families who had no income.

And our churches here have been casualties of war. A church of the Convocation worshipped in Dresden, Germany, until it was destroyed by bombing. Our parish in Munich was closed bythe Gestapo in 1942, and its library of eight thousand books was burned.

Most of our churches here were closed during the Second World War. And our cathedral inParis was used as a military chapel by the occupying German forces.

Perhaps more than any other part of the Episcopal Church, our churches in Europe have livedthrough the horrors of war—and the pointlessness of war, too. The cathedralʹs cloister, a memorial to the dead of the twentieth century’s wars in Europe, is our silent testimony to thattruth.

And for a long time—almost eighty years—we have believed that the futility of war wasenough to deter it. Today, with war unleashed in Ukraine, we have been proven wrong.

Our faith teaches us that we must stand with the vulnerable and the oppressed. And at the same time, our faith teaches us that we are meant to be followers of the prince of peace, of theone who taught us that violence is always a compromise with evil.

It is hard for us to reconcile those two teachings today, when innocent people are dying at the hands of a military onslaught. Our prayers feel insufficient to defend those cowering in fear andexposed to bullets and bombs.

But we know that the place where war lives is in the human heart. As the prophet Jeremiahteaches us, the heart is devious above all else; and it is in the devices and desires of hearts resisting God’s call to live in love that the first seeds of war take root.

We often begin our prayers with the words “Almighty God.” But the deeper truth of our Christian faith is that we believe humanity has been redeemed, and the world forever changed,by an all‐vulnerable God—a god whose love is finally victorious through the vulnerability of a naked man nailed to a cross. It is from that seeming defeat that the victory over death and sin iswon forever—even the sin that lies at the heart of war.

And so as we begin our season of Lent, we are called to give up our easy complacency about the durability of peace. We are called to consider again the reminders in our midst of war’s relentless cost to human life and God’s hope. And we are called to pray, and speak, and to laborfor the truth that Christ has called us to transform this broken world through the hard work of love.

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A Prayer Vigil for Peace in Ukraine

The Officiant begins

May the Lord Almighty grant us a peaceful night and a perfect end. AMEN Officiant People

Our help is in the Name of the Lord; The maker of heaven and earth.

The Officiant continues

Merciful God of times past, present and yet to be: We gather together in this, your house, uncertain of the future and, yet, certain of your presence.

You summon us once again from our day of work and worry, laundry and learning, to worship and pray.

You call us together to teach us how to transform weapons into instruments of life and peace.

God teach us.

Jesus walk with us.

Spirit energize us.

Help us to speak with our hearts, hands and voices.

Let us pray.

God of peace and justice, we pray for the people of Ukraine tonight.

We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons.

We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow, that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them.

We pray for those with power over war or peace, for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions.

Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear, that you would hold and protect them.

We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace Amen.

Officiant People Officiant People Officiant People

We confess that we have wounded your love.

O God, heal us We confess we stumble in the darkness Light of the world transform us.

We confess we forget that we are your home Spirit of God, dwell in us.

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The Officiant continues Eternal Spirit, living God, in whom we live and move and have our being, All that we are, have been and shall be is known to you, To the very secret of our hearts and all that rises to trouble us.

Living flame, burn in us, Cleansing wind, blow through us, Fountain of water, well up within us, That we may love in deed and in truth.

The Lessons The First Lesson: Isaiah 2:4‐5 The words invert the picture of an earlier prophet, who spoke of a time of war (Joel 3:10). Isaiah must have known that prediction, and yet he proclaims (following Hosea 2:18) that peace, not war, is the ideal goal.

He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

5 O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the LORD! 4

Psalm 27:1‐4, 7‐8, 10 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who stumbled and fell.

3 Though an army encamp against me, yet my heart shall not be afraid; 4 and though war should rise up against me, yet will I put my trust in him.

7 For in the day of trouble he shall keep me safe in his shelter; he shall hide me in the secrecy of his dwelling and set me high upon a rock 8 Even now he lifts up my head above my enemies round about me 10 Hearken to my voice, O LORD, when I call; have mercy on me and answer me.

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The Second Lesson: 1 Timothy 2:1‐2 Saint Paul writes to young Timothy encouraging the early Christian church to pray for those governing and in roles of public service saying,

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”

A Poem by Mekhala Saran As Ukraine combats the Russian invasion, and civilians in the country fear for their lives, the devastating impact of war becomes evident. ʹBallad of Bawling Babies’ is a poem on war and what war does to us.

Valour is mute

And when theyʹll ask you what is country

So if war comes

Will you show them the land

It will not be the sound of honour,

Rendered battered and barren by the acts of

Of sturdy men in sturdy boots

men.

That you will hear.

Will you show them sickness and smoke

What you will hear,

The absolute dearth of hope

However,

An economy so broke

Will be a ballad of bawling babies.

A sea of orphans, no home?

Broken, Ailing, Hungry

When they ask you what is country

And when theyʹll look at you with their

And what their parents died fighting for

innocent eyes

Will you even be able to tell yourself

And ask you if you know where their parents

What it really is,

went will you tell them that they died

And who is not losing this war?

fighting a war for the country?

Litany of Lamentations (A Guided Meditation) This meditation is adapted from the Mennonite Peace Prayer. During this meditation, you may remain in your seat to pray or meditate, you may come to the front of the church to light a candle or you may pray at the altar rail.

There is no peace because there are no peacemakers. There are no makers of peace because the making of peace is at least as costly as the making of war ‐at least as exigent, at least as disruptive, at least as liable to bring disgrace and prison and death in its wake.ʺ ‐‐ Father Daniel Berrigan True peace is not merely the absence of tension, but the presence of justice and brotherhood.ʺ ‐‐ Martin Luther King, Jr.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning? Oh my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but find no rest. ‐‐ Psalm 22: 1‐2

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Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, ʺYou are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.ʺ ‐‐ Psalm 16: 1‐2 Prolonged Silence Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit. ‐‐ Psalm 17: 1 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house...Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly. ‐‐ Isaiah 58: 6‐8 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. ‐‐ Psalm 34: 14 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. ‐‐ Psalm 34: 18 Prolonged Silence Cry aloud to the Lord! ...let tears stream down like a torrent, day and night! Give yourself no rest, your eyes no respite! Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches! Pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint for hunger at the head of every street. ‐‐ Lamentations 2: 18‐19 For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying ʺPeace, peace,ʺ when there is no peace. ‐‐ Jeremiah 6: 13‐14 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. ‐‐ Psalm 34: 18minute) I dream of giving birth to a child who will ask “Mother, what was war?” ‐‐ Eve Merriam Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ʺWhom shall I send, and who will go for us?ʺ And I said, ʺHere am I: send me!ʺ ‐‐ Isaiah 6: 8 Prolonged silence Officiant People Officiant

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

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Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your Name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trail, and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen Officiant People Officiant

Lord, hear our prayer; And let our cry come to you.

Knowing that war can bring about only suffering and death, we look to our God to bring about reconciliation between the leaders of Ukraine and Russia. Together with our Russian and Ukrainian brothers and sisters, we pray.

Holy and Gracious God, we pray for the people of Ukraine and the people of Russia; for their countries and their leaders. Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace.

We pray for all those who are afraid; that your everlasting arms hold them in this time of great fear.

Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace.

We pray for all those who have the power over life and death; that they will choose for all people life, and life in all its fullness. Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace.

We pray for those who choose war; that they will remember that you direct your people to turn our swords into ploughshares and seek for peace. Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace.

We pray for leaders on the world stage; that they are inspired by the wisdom and courage to work toward non‐violent solutions to differences. Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace.

Above all, Lord, today we pray for peace for Ukraine and we ask this in the name of your blessed Son. Lord, in your mercy, grant us peace. AMEN O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom: Defend your humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in your defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord.

AMEN. (BCP Collect for Peace)

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Lead our brothers and sisters in Ukraine and Russia from death to life, from falsehood to truth; lead them, and us from despair to hope, from fear to trust; lead us all from hate to love, from war to peace.

Let peace fill our hearts and our world. AMEN. (adapted from A New Zealand Prayer Book) O Lord God of life, as you care for all creation, give us your peace. May our security come not from weapons, but from respect. May our strength come not from violence, but from love. May our own wealth come not from money, but from sharing. May our path be not one of ambition, but of justice.

May our victory not be one of revenge, but of forgiveness. Unarmed, and confident, help us to defend the dignity of all creation. Sharing today and always the bread of solidarity and peace. Through Jesus Christ your divine Son, our brother, who from high on the cross offered forgiveness to all. AMEN. (Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Elizabeth Eaton) We thank you for opening the hearts of many to those who are fleeing for their lives. Help us now to open our arms in welcome and reach out our hands in support. That the desperate may find new hope, and lives torn apart be restored. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ who fled persecution at his birth and at his last triumphed over death. AMEN. (a Jesuit prayer for those fleeing conflict)

God of timelessness, from chaos and disorder you brought forth the beauty of creation; from the chaos of war and violence, bring forth the beauty of peace. God of compassion, you saw the humanity of the outcast and the stranger; Help us to see the evils of our hatreds and suspicions and to turn them into the embrace of your Beloved Community. God of peace, through your love on the cross you overcame the power of violence and death; turn us away from the love of power that we may transform a warring worldthrough the power of your love. AMEN.

The Dismissal Officiant People

Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God

May the Lord bless and keep us; may He grant us strength to live through troubled times; may He fill us with grace equal to every need and his peace which passes all understanding; may he grant us the wisdom‐and the will‐to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with him; and my he surround us with his love, and lead us in the paths of everlasting life. AMEN. RESOURCES Medical aid and humanitarian relief for front lines: https://www.facebook.com/donate/337101825010055/ Revived Soldiers Ukraine: https://www.rsukraine.org/

Help children of war in Ukraine https://voices.org.ua/en/ Independent Ukranian journalism: https://www.gofundme.com/f/kyivindependent‐launch More resources: https://www.npr.org/2022/02/25/1082992947/ukraine‐support‐help Episcopal Church Migration Ministries: https://episcopalmigrationministries.org/

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