This litany was first used at an ecumenical Earth Day service in Denver, Colorado USA, sponsored by Eco-Justice Ministries and the Colorado Council of Churches. (slightly adapted for inclusive language)
Biblical references include: Lamentations 1:20 (Holy Week), Psalms 5:1 (Sixth Sunday of Pentecost, Year C), Psalms 31:14-15 (Holy Week), 25, Psalms 71:14 (Holy Week), Romans 15:13 (Second Sunday of Advent, Year A)
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Copyright 2001, Eco-Justice Ministries. Permission to reproduce is granted for one-time use in worship bulletins.
We have gathered this day, O God, as your people.
We join together to worship and praise you, our Creator,
and we join in lifting our prayers for the Earth.
With the prophets and the psalmists,
we have the courage to speak to you of our despair and our fear.
Behold, for I am in distress,
my soul is in tumult, my heart is wrung within me. (Lamentations 1:20)
We raise to you, O God, our awareness of the trauma of our world:
the suffering and death inflicted by toxins and pollution,
the destruction of places where we once found beauty and serenity,
and the ongoing devastation of ecosystems.
Give ear to my words; give heed to my groaning. (Psalms 5:1)
We lift our anguish at the demise of species and the loss of diversity,
the pollution of air and water and soil,
the transformation even of oceans and atmosphere.
We grieve and fear at the Earth’s distress.
Give ear to my words; give heed to my groaning. (Psalms 5:1)
Because we trust in you, O God, we are not defeated!
We live in faith, and with vision that goes beyond the distress of this day.
I trust in thee.
My times are in thy hand;
Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the Eternal One! (Psalms 31:14-15, 25)
God of the exodus, God who makes all things new,
we lift our hope for transformation and change.
We hope for new ways of living that flow gently within your creation;
we hope for healing of the tattered web of life.
I will hope continually, and will praise thee yet more and more. (Psalms 71:14)
We hope for vision and courage from our political leaders;
we hope for restless insistence for change from our people;
we hope for cooperation for healing among the nations of the earth.
I will hope continually, and will praise thee yet more and more. (Psalms 71:14)
We hope for change within our own lives and our society,
that we might free ourselves from a mindless and destructive questing after things,
that we might find joy and fulfillment in simple pleasures.
I will hope continually, and will praise thee yet more and more. (Psalms 71:14)
We hope for new technologies that will lessen our impact on the world;
we hope for change in economic systems
so that the rape of nature is not profitable,
so that the exploitation of people is not rewarded.
I will hope continually, and will praise thee yet more and more. (Psalms 71:14)
We hope for growing leadership from your church,
calling us to faithful stewardship of creation,
calling us to seek justice for all people around this globe,
and proclaiming values that preserve and enhance all life.
I will hope continually, and will praise thee yet more and more. (Psalms 71:14)
We are your people, a resurrection people!
In the sure and certain hope of your saving love and grace,
we turn away from the exploitation of your creation,
and we align ourselves your purposes.
We are your people, a resurrection people!
Seeking reconciliation and healing.
We are your people, a resurrection people!
Seeking shalom: peace, justice and harmony for all of creation.
We are your people, a resurrection people!
We find hope in the midst of despair,
courage in the midst of struggle.
God of history, you call us to face the realities of the world,
to acknowledge the powers and principalities aligned against us,
to face honestly the struggles that lie before us.
We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed;
perplexed, but not driven to despair;
persecuted, but not forsaken;
struck down, but not destroyed.
So we do not lose heart. (2 Corinthians 4:8, 16)
We are people of faith, and in we are strengthened
by being part of the community of faith.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing,
so that by the power of the Holy Spirit we may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13, alt.)
