Prayer祷告
By Rev Dr Ji Zhang, 张骥
On this day, our prayer is one of remembrance:
We remember that those who perished
in the earthquake in Syria and Türkiye.
More than numbers,
More than statistics,
More valuable than sparrows;
Each was a person of sacred worth created in the image of God.
Here, at this place and this time,
we pause to remember the untold thousands
who perished this week.
They were people who belonged to villages in Syria, communities in Türkiye.
Lord, have mercy upon this earth and all who mourn on this day.
On this day we lift our prayer for all who survived,
those who lost loved ones and face the terrible responsibility
to keep on living in the midst of death,
to keep on loving in the midst of loss,
to keep on finding of those who may never be recovered.
We pray for children without parents,
parents without children,
spouses missing,
and families torn apart.
Today, we pray for ourselves
and all those with power to help —
those individuals, churches, cities
and nations entrusted with the resources needed
to relieve suffering, sustain life and rebuild the communities.
We pray for
eyes that are open to see what Jesus sees,
ears that are open to truly hear,
hearts that are open to love as Christ loved,
and lives that respond to our neighbour’s crying.
O God the creator of heaven and earth,
We come to worship you
and to seek understanding of this life
in which death is a ghostly shadow.
Enlighten us, O God,
with your light that overcomes darkness.
Amen.
(Rewritten based on the prayer by the United Church of Christ, USA)
