Prayer for Black Lives and for Dallas
Prayer for Black Lives and Dallas Police: –Rev. Jude
Spirit of Life, God of Many Names, Source of Love,
Many of us are numb this week,
Overwhelmed with fear and uncertainty
in the face of story after story,
Of another person killed in our streets.
Alton Sterling for selling cd’s at a gas station,
Philando Castile for a broken tail light.
And 5 Dallas police and transit officers who gave their lives, and 7 who were wounded, while protecting civilians, who were peacefully protesting the deaths of Alton and Philando.
The names of the fallen that are now public are Brent Thompson, a 43-year-old transit police officer and Patrick Zamarripa, a 32-year-old police officer who served three tours in Iraq with the U.S. military.
We are grateful that 3 of the officers injured are expected to recover. We pray for the healing of:
Omar Cannon, 44; Misty McBride, 32; and Jesus Retana, 39 – as well as all the officers who names are not yet public.
Let us hold a moment of silence for the injured and the dead…
Mother of Hope,
We ask for their healing,
While we know that the grief, the sorrow and the fear that rests in our hearts
May not heal anytime soon.
We mourn with the victims families – whose lives have forever changed with the loss of their loved ones.
Grant us a spirit of resolution to do the work of community building centered in justice and compassion;
Ever knowing that violence never leads to justice for any of us.
Help our nation to move through the impasse of pitting the value of Black Lives against support for our officers.
Teach us ways not to fall into the false message that one cannot value the rights and humanity of Black civilians if one values our police.
May we cease to pit one against the other; yet ever continue to affirm the mattering of Black Lives who are so egregiously assaulted; while ensuring our officers have the resources they need to do the hard work they are here to do.
We ceaselessly pray for a time in our nation where gun violence does not plague our lands;
where power and privilege wage war on the rights of the individual for a life of meaning and substance;
and we commit and recommit to doing the public work to change our practices and policies that lead us relentlessly down this tragic road.
RevWho 
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