Chalice Lighting: “May we light this chalice to honor our past:”

May we light this chalice to honor our past:
     for Jan Hus, burned at the stake
         for suggesting that the cup be shared by all;
     for our Service Committee's earliest days,
         when its logo enabled the persecuted to find a safe haven.

May we light this chalice to endorse our present:
     for our commitment to truth and freedom,
         without which right relationships are impossible;
     for our commitment to character and honor,
         without which our dignity is a sham.

Let us light this chalice to symbolize our future:
     for a brighter future for every person on earth;
     for a sustaining faith that carries us through even the darkest of times.