Interfaith Service of Word and Prayer
John Dornheim, ELCA Lutheran
?For God alone my soul waits in silence; from God comes my salvation. God
alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall never be shaken.?
Welcome
Why we are here.
Invocation
Greeting
May the God of all consolation be with you.
And also with you!
May the God of peace and mercy be with you.
And also with you!
May the God of all creation be with you.
And also with you!
May the God of compassion and justice be with you.
And also with you!
May the Compassionate one, who feels our pain and cries with us in our passion
and the Just One, who rages with us against the Injustice of our experience, be
with you!
And also with you! Amen
The Call to worship
Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;
O Lord, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror
Turn, O Lord, save my life;
Deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love.
The Lord hears the sound of my weeping.
All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror.
Stir up your might and come to save us.
Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
Prayers for the Day
O God full of compassion, Eternal Spirit of the universe, grant perfect rest
under the winds of your presence to our loved ones who have entered eternity.
Ruler of mercy, let them find refuge for ever in the shadow of your wings, and
let their souls be bound up in the bond of eternal life. The eternal God of
their inheritance. May they rest in peace, and let us say
Amen
(ALL) We believe in you, O God, for you have made the suffering of humanity
known to your heart. You have come to establish a kingdom and reign of the poor
and humble. Today we cry to you, because you are alive, you are with us and give
us peace in the midst of fear and pain. Amen
The Pastoral Prayer
Ever-loving and compassionate God, we come to you now with hearts that are
filled with pain, grief, horror and uncertainty at what has happened in our
country. We grieve for all those who have died as a result of this tragedy in
New York City, Washington, DC and Pennsylvania. We pray for the medical staff,
support staff, family and friends of the persons who are sick or injured and
possibly dying. We also pray for all survivors of this tragedy, Lord grant them
your peace that goes beyond all understanding.
Lord of Wisdom, we beseech you to grant to our national, international and local
leaders your wisdom and discernment, fortitude and strength as they carry out
their responsibilities. Gracious and eternal Lord we pray that all persons will
come to the deep and ever-lasting desire for peace and harmony.
We also pray this day for the persons who perpetrated this horrific action on
our nation. Lord, they feel that we are their enemies and their hearts are full
of malice and they thirst for destruction. Merciful God, we ask that hardened
hearts of hate and destruction be transformed to that of peace and unity with
all your people.
Grant our county the ability to rebuild our external lives as well as our inner
lives of faith, hope, trust and love. Amen
A Reading from the Islamic Tradition
Psalm 71 (responsively)
1 In you, O LORD, I take refuge; let me never be put to shame.
2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me
and save me.
3 Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me, for you are my
rock and my fortress.
4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the
unjust and cruel.
5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.
6 Upon you I have leaned from my birth; it was you who took me from my
mother?s womb. My praise is continually of you.
7 I have been like a portent to many, but you are my strong refuge.
8 My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all day long.
A Reading from the Jewish Tradition
Psalm 71
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; do not forsake me when my
strength is spent.
10 For my enemies speak concerning me, and those who watch for my life
consult together.
11 They say, ?Pursue and seize that person whom God has forsaken, for there is
no one to deliver.?
12 O God, do not be far from me; O my God, make haste to help me!
13 Let my accusers be put to shame and consumed; let those who seek to hurt me
be covered with scorn and disgrace.
14 But I will hope continually, and will praise you yet more and more.
15 My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all
day long, though their number is past my knowledge.
16 I will come praising the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD, I will praise
your righteousness, yours alone.
A Reading from the Christian Tradition
Psalm 71
17 O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous
deeds.
18 So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I
proclaim your might to all the generations to come.
19 Your power and your righteousness, O God, reach the high heavens. You who
have done great things, O God, who is like you?
20 You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me
again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again.
21 You will increase my honor, and comfort me once again.
22 I will also praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, O my God; I
will sing praises to you with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which
you have rescued.
24 All day long my tongue will talk of your righteous help, for those who
tried to do me harm have been put to shame, and disgraced.
Words of Comfort from leaders of our Three Major Traditions
Prayer
Holy God, we pray for our nation, and for our many of our families that have
have been so grievously torn by violence. We pray for the healing of so many
wounded souls and bodies.
We pray for the healing of so many hearts that have been touched by the fire and
ashes of an earthly hell. We pray for healing for those who even now seek to
care for the wounded, the dying and the dead. Holy God, we pray for peace: For
peace in paradise for all those who have died.
For peace and calm assurance for our leaders, and especially our President, as
he and they seek to comfort a shaken nation and world For peace in the place of
hatred in the hearts of those who have visited this violence upon our nation and
our families. For peace and the work of justice in the place of cries for
vengeance. For all of us, but especially for those who mourn, we pray for that
peace which passes all understanding, as we live this day without understanding.
All this we ask in the name of you, O God, our creator and sustainer
Amen
Kaddish
Magnified and sanctified be the great name of God in the world which he created
according to his will. May he establish his Kingdom in your life and in your
days, and in the lifetime of all his people: quickly and speedily may it come;
and let us say
Amen! Blessed be God for ever!
Blessed, praised and glorified, exalted, extolled and honored, magnified and
lauded be the name of the Holy One; blessed be God! Though he be high above all
the blessings and hymns, praises and consolations, which are uttered in the
world; and let us say
Amen! Blessed be God for ever!
May there be abundant peace from heaven and life for us and for all people; let
us say
Amen! Blessed be God for ever!
Blessings from the three traditions
Distribution of flowers
Distribution of flowers because...As you pass the flowers also take time to
share your feelings of last Tuesday, today and tomorrow.
