The California and Oregon wildfires have consumed more than three million acres of forest./ Firefighters and civilians have been killed./ Dozens of people are missing./ Homes,/ businesses/and countless animals have been lost./ Thousand year old redwood trees have been destroyed./ Water tables are now polluted./ We ask for the awakening we need to save ourselves and our planet./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray for the many who are sick with coronavirus/ and for those who generously and bravely help them./ For those who mourn the dead./ We pray boldly for those who are not being helpful, /but who selfishingly disregard even the simplest ways of caring for others during this time of sickness./We pray to the Lord.
There are heads of state and even some in church positions today,/ who are failing the people,/ spinning lies,/ promoting fear,/ chaos,/ suspicion and doubt./ We ask for Christ's light/ in a time of deep darkness./ We pray to the Lord.
One author writes,/ "It is easier to move a mountain than to change a human heart."/ We ask for the new heart of Christ,/ compassionate,/ merciful,/ truthful and kind./ We pray to the Lord.
As autumn begins,/ we remember the American essayist and naturalist,/ Henry David Thoreau/ who shares that in September,/ he would walk half a mile out of his way to witness a maple tree turned scarlet./ The planet loses three trillion trees a year./ May we treasure God's gifts./ We pray to the Lord.
Monday is the Feast of St. Matthew,/ apostle and evangelist./ Grant that we would know and love Christ's Sermon on the Mount which Matthew gives us,/ especially Christ's mandate to break the cycles of violence,/ to forgive/ and to pray for our enemies./ We pray to the Lord.
