A prayer for repatterning our lives at Easter
Sacred Mystery,
We confess that we do not much trust this resurrection story.
It doesn’t fit with the headlines about Gaza and a hundred other places.
It doesn’t work into our win-lose action plans for success.
It doesn’t make any sense according to the dominant worldview of our culture.
Sacred Mystery,
If only there were a guarantee,
If only there were reasonable explanations,
If only there were reliable statistics,
Perhaps we could trust this resurrection power.
But oh, Sacred Mystery,
We are tired of the violence,
We are weary of wars,
We are even sad at the state of our own lives and relationships,
The pain we cause, the power we misuse, the divisions we feel,
The despair we tolerate.
We want to risk resurrection.
We want to come out of the prison of our limited knowledge.
We want to emerge from the tombs that hold us back from new life.
Make us an Easter people, we pray.
We seek the courage to be people of your peace.
We seek the hope that will sustain us in the desert times
Until the tree of life blossoms and bears its fruit of justice and joy. Amen.
- Barbara Battin
This prayer appears in Sacraments and Seasons: Peacemaking through Worship, a book of worship resources by the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program. Call (800) 524-2612; order PDS 70-270-01-011; $4.95 plus shipping and handling.