A Litany for the Coworkers of Christ
In the Way of the Prince of Peace
By +Brian Ernest Brown, CWC
Leader: Blessed be Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace.
People: His mercy endures for ever.
Leader: In a world of rage and fracture,
People: Make us your peace, O Christ.
Leader: When we are tempted to hardness,
People: Make us tender with holy strength.
Leader: When fear builds walls in our hearts,
People: Teach us the courage of love.
Leader: When violence is called wisdom,
People: Keep us faithful to the way of the Cross.
Leader: O Prince of Peace,
People: Form in us the mind of Christ.
Leader: Jesus, Companion of the poor and forgotten,
People: Make us coworkers in your mercy.
Leader: You who ate with outcasts and sinners,
People: Teach us the wideness of your table.
Leader: You who touched the unclean without hesitation,
People: Give us the daring of compassion.
Leader: You who knelt to wash the feet of friends,
People: Make us servants, not masters.
Leader: You who bore injustice without hatred,
People: Make us steadfast without bitterness.
Leader: Where there is restlessness within us,
People: Speak your peace, O Lord.
Leader: Where there is resentment hidden deep,
People: Heal us with forgiveness.
Leader: Where there is exhaustion and despair,
People: Renew us by your Spirit.
Leader: Where we have been wounded by the Church,
People: Bind us with your gentleness.
Leader: Where we have wounded others,
People: Grant us repentance and repair.
Leader: For nations hungry for power,
People: Bring down the idols of domination.
Leader: For refugees and immigrants seeking safety,
People: Shelter them beneath your wings.
Leader: For the poor crushed by systems of greed,
People: Raise up justice like living water.
Leader: For those targeted because of race, gender, or sexuality,
People: Be their defender and friend.
Leader: For those imprisoned, forgotten, or discarded,
People: Let them know they are not alone.
Leader: For those who persecute and harm,
People: Turn their hearts toward mercy.
Leader: Make us a community of prayer,
People: Rooted in silence and truth.
Leader: Make us a community of peace,
People: Fearless in love.
Leader: Make us a community of simplicity,
People: Free from the grip of excess.
Leader: Make us a community of welcome,
People: Open as the heart of Christ.
Leader: Make us a community of courage,
People: Faithful even when it costs.
Leader: O Christ, Prince of Peace,
make of our lives an offering,
not of noise, but of faithfulness;
not of dominance, but of service;
not of anger, but of mercy.
Send us into the world as coworkers of your Commonwealth,
bearing your peace in our hearts,
your justice in our hands,
your Gospel on our lips.
People: Come, Lord Jesus, come. Amen.