CEC General Secretary Dr Jørgen Skov Sørensen, on behalf of CEC Member Churches, offers a prayer for peace in Ukraine amid recently escalating tension in the country.
“The role of churches is to offer hope. Prayer offers hope. Therefore, we pray for peace in Ukraine, thinking of all communities, who can directly get affected by the armed conflict,” he said.
Published by CEC Member Church, the Church of Scotland, and other churches in the region, CEC General Secretary presents a special prayer expressing concern about the current situation.
A prayer for Ukraine:
The news can be difficult to listen to and to read.
When that news relates to faces we know
And to voices familiar to us,
It becomes all the harder to hear.
Lord God,
We ask you to hold the people of Ukraine deep in your heart.
Protect them, we pray;
From violence,
From political gamesmanship,
from being used and abused.
Give, we pray,
the nations of the world the courage
and the wisdom
to stand up for justice
and the courage too,
to dare to care - generously.
Lord in your mercy,
Take from us all,
The tendencies in us
That seek to lord it over others:
Take from us those traits
that see us pursuing our own needs and wants
before those of others.
Teach us how to live in love
And dignity
And respect - following your example.
In your name and for your sake,
Amen