Since the recent explosion in Beirut,/ more than 100,000 children have been displaced./ An injured six-year-old boy asks his mother,/ "What is this life?"/. Grant that we would live in/ and govern this world/ that's its children would be our first priority and love./ We pray to the Lord.
We join Pope Francis who prayed in anticipation of Mary's Assumption,/ and as the coronavirus persists:/ "May she help us to resist selfishness,/ indifference,/ and individualism,/ which weakens solidarity within society."/ We pray to the Lord.
In an election year,/ we pray for the President of the United States/ and for all elected officials./ We pray for those who seek public office./ For world leaders not to be blamers,/ liars,/ self-aggrandizing or self-enriching,/ but to live in the service of their people./ We pray to the Lord.
There are presently twenty active conflicts and wars in the world./ Some have been fought for decades/ claiming the lives of combatants and civilians,/ many of whom are children./ We pray for the world to evolve in the willingness to resolve problems peacefully./ For those countries,/ including our own,/ which militarize the world through the immoral sale of weapons./ We pray to the Lord.
Our nation loses 36 million trees in cities alone each year,/ often due to neglect/ or because they are in the way of making money./ May we gratefully acknowledge God's imagination,/ and learn to care for the shade-producing,/ planet-cooling,/ air purifying,/ ground holding,/ soul-pleasing trees./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray for our families and friends during this time of sickness,/ and for the many who are out of work,/ at risk of being evicted,/ or struggling with depression or a sense of despair./ For the protection of young people,/ teachers and other personnel as schools begin to resume classes./ We pray to the Lord.
