day of prayer for Katrina victims...

Today has been designated as a day of prayer for the Katrina victims. I offer the following prayer from the suture zone:

O God, we cry out to you
Because of this great devastation
Visited upon those who are
Our sisters and brothers
And mothers and fathers
And sons and daughters
All.

And though we are told by people
who seem to know that we are not to ask
Or be so bold as to demand answers,
We cry out with your servant Job, “Why?”
And we wait.

O God, we reel like drunken men from the images we have seen,
Of devastation and destruction,
Of desperation and abandonment,
Of selfishness and class judgment,
Of privilege and poverty.

We have seen them, the people
With hollow faces and empty stares,
And desperate cries for help unanswered.
For the first time, O God, we have seen them,
For the first time – God forgive us – for the first time.
And we cry out to you, O God, for their distress is great.

For those who have lost all,
O Lord, show your mercy.
For the children who have lost parents,
O Lord, show your mercy.
For the parents who have lost children,
O Lord, show your mercy.
For those who have lost anyone or anything dear to them,
O Lord, show your mercy.
For those who perished, forgotten by our society, not missed nor mourned,
O Lord, show us mercy.

Deliver them, O Lord.
Deliver us, O Lord.
Give them strength to find hope.
Give us strength to offer hope;
Bring healing and grace in the midst of devastation.
Bring justice in the midst of neglect.
Bring our eyes to see as you see,
As we pray, hope against hope, that you see.

O God,
May your kingdom come among and through us again.
Make your face to shine upon us again.

We wait for you, O God.
We wait.

Amen.

Grace and peace,

Owen