Today I went to an outdoor church service on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in support of creating change in the Darfur region of Sudan. There is tremendous genocide going on there right now, and while the U.S. government is beginning to turn some attention to the problem, not enough is being done. I was inspired by the speakers and by the story of a Sudanese woman who spoke. I was also touched by the prayer we prayed together:
Holy and loving God, we confess our indifference to the suffering of our neighbors around the world, and especially in Darfur, Sudan. We live in comfort and security; they live in constant danger. We live in affluence; they live in desperate need. We live in freedom and under the protection of law; they live in displacement and vulnerability to those who hate them. For our indifference, we seek your mercy.
O God to whom nothing is impossible, we confess our lack of faith. Too often we assume that injustice is more powerful than faith, that evil is more powerful than hope, that hatred is more powerful than lover. But your gospel teaches that with you, all things are possible. Your resurrection demonstrates that your good will triumph over evil. For our lack of faith we seek your mercy.
And God, we confess the inexcusable paralysis and dividedness of our churches, and of our nation. We let ourselves be divided by secondary matters, while others die because we are not unified on their behalf. We squabble and quarrel about polarizing matters, paralyzing ourselves by argument when we should be united in compassion. Too often we care more about the triumph of our parties and positions than we care about the protection and survival of the poor, the weak, and the oppressed. For our dividedness and misguided priorities, we seek your mercy.
Something to think about.
Sunday, June 12, 2005
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2 comments:
Just wanted to say that I've been reading. I promise to write a real e-mail soon - want some space for it. But thanks for taking me along in the meantime. -Heather
It's very interesting what is being said and done about Sudan. You should really have gone to the convocation with the chap who was with the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. in '94 during the Rwanda genocide. Anyway, it's interesting as NATO just decided to airlift in AU peacekeepers. So, even if the U.S. is sitting by idly, the rest of the world may try and do something (though probably nowhere near enough...).
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