The world is grieving./ This is the 19th century of Saint George/ which burned to the ground as the small town of Zavorychi, Ukraine was destroyed./ Grant that as Christians gather on Palm Sunday,/ we would treasure our house of worship and faith community./ At the start of Holy Week,/ we pray for the conversion of our sad world./ We pray to the Lord.
As awful as the burning of a church is,/ there is the murder of civilians,/ children and their mothers,/ pregnant women,/ elderly people,/ frail or defenseless people./ Some have even been visibly executed./ It is the time of mass graves again./ Pope Francis has called it "sacrilegious."/ There is almost nothing to say,/ only the silence of humanity which has once again shamed itself./ We pray to the Lord.
Words like atrocity,/ uncivilized,/ war crimes,/ seem to no longer express the terrible realities of the twenty-first century./ The envelope of air we live in is filled with poisonous smoke,/ the ground is soaked with toxins,/ the waters are clogged with waste and death,/ the birds are gone,/ even the trees in the forests and parks are splintered and burn./ For the healing of our planet./ We pray to the Lord.
There are many who speak of this Ukrainian outrage with words like fake and lies./ We pray for them and for any who excuse,/ ignore or defend evil./ For religious leaders who are weak/ and protective of their own interests./ We pray to the Lord.
This Friday remembers humankind rejecting Christ,/ the all Good One./ The message of the crucifix is:/ "Look at what we are capable of doing."/ We pray boldly for a world that does not seem to learn/ that is content to live in barbarous ignorance./ We pray to the Lord.
In the face of new horrors,/ this great confrontation with evil,/ many people are helping./ May God bless and protect them — the people who drive through danger to save others,/ those providing food,/ shelter,/ comfort and medical help,/ those who search for the ones left behind,/ reporters who bravely reveal the awful truth./ We pray to the Lord.
