Of Prayer and Peace

Of Prayer and Peace

Ann’s Prayer

This past Sunday, my wife Ann and I were driving to pick up one of life’s necessities – new bags for our vacuum cleaner.  Prayer is a necessity too.  It helps to clean our spirit of unwanted dust and dirt.  As we were driving, I asked Ann what she prays for during the day.

“I pray for justice and peace for in the world as we are called to do” she replied.

Pausing for a few seconds, she added “I also pray for economic security for everyone.  There is so much suffering in the world which we hear about and see daily.  How can politicians and others not see that?”

Last year, Ann lost the sight in her left eye after numerous corneal transplants and a fungal infection.  She, who has lost so much, still sees with her heart and prays for those who are also suffering.    Ann knows the necessity of prayer and its power to heal and strengthen.

Assisi Candles Photograph Copyright 2008 John M. Kingery

The Assisi Prayer

Tuesday was the 10^th anniversary of the Assisi Pledge for Peace.  The pledge was the result of over 200 spiritual leaders answering Pope John Paul II’s call to come to Assisi to prayer for peace on January 22, 2002.   Participating were members of 16 from Christian churches and communities, 30 Muslim clerics from 18 nations, 10 rabbis and representatives from Buddhism, Tenrikyo, Shintoism, Jainism, Sikhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Confucianism and traditional African religions.

I learned of the pledge in 2007 and believe it should be considered a blue print for peace in our communities and world.  The Pledge is meant to inspire and to be lived out and its text is below.

Decalogue of Assisi for Peace[i]

1.    We commit ourselves to proclaiming our firm conviction that violence and terrorism are incompatible with the authentic spirit of religion, and, as we condemn every recourse to violence and war in the name of God or of religion, we commit ourselves to doing everything possible to eliminate the root causes of terrorism.

2.    We commit ourselves to educating people to mutual respect and esteem, in order to help bring about a peaceful and fraternal coexistence between people of different ethnic groups, cultures and religions. 

3.    We commit ourselves to fostering the culture of dialogue, so that there will be an increase of understanding and mutual trust between individuals and among peoples, for these are the premise of authentic peace.

4.    We commit ourselves to defending the right of everyone to live a decent life in accordance with their own cultural identity, and to form freely a family of his own.

5.    We commit ourselves to frank and patient dialogue, refusing to consider our differences as an insurmountable barrier, but recognizing instead that to encounter the diversity of others can become an opportunity for greater reciprocal understanding.

6.    We commit ourselves to forgiving one another for past and present errors and prejudices, and to supporting one another in a common effort both to overcome selfishness and arrogance, hatred and violence, and to learn from the past that peace without justice is no true peace.

7.    We commit ourselves to taking the side of the poor and the helpless, to speaking out for those who have no voice and to working effectively to change these situations, out of the conviction that no one can be happy alone.

8.    We commit ourselves to taking up the cry of those who refuse to be resigned to violence and evil, and we are desire to make every effort possible to offer the men and women of our time real hope for justice and peace.

9.    We commit ourselves to encouraging all efforts to promote friendship between peoples, for we are convinced that, in the absence of solidarity and understanding between peoples, technological progress exposes the world to a growing risk of destruction and death.

10.     We commit ourselves to urging leaders of nations to make every effort to create and consolidate, on the national and international levels, a world of solidarity and peace based on justice.

My Prayer

May our prayers for peace and justice lead us to live lives of peace and justice.  Gracious God give us the strength, patience to persevere along the journey to peace.

In Peace,

John