Below please find the prayer that Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt, the President of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), is offering at “All Roads Lead to the South,” the National Day of Action for Voting Rights. This day of action takes place today in Selma, Alabama.
Prayer for Selma
God of many names and one Abundant Love,
We gather on this sacred day in mourning, in outrage, and in deep, prophetic love. We gather in the knowledge that we must rise up and say never again; we will not rest in silence while the dehumanization and disenfranchisement of anti-black and anti-brown politics run rampant throughout this nation, unchecked. Strengthen us to move along the same paths taken by our ancestors, hearten us when political leaders admit without shame(!) their intentions to control the nation against the will of its people, to steal our agency, our right to fair representation, and our votes.
Shelter all those attacked simply for representing the good gift of human diversity in all of its forms, or for raising their voices for justice. Help us to hold the line in support of one another. Sustain us in a love that inspires neighbor to care for neighbor, and calls for restoring the moral soul of the nation without compromise.
We were made for these times! Let us continue to claim our power together in coalition and undertake every faithful action until the full protections of the Voting Rights Act are restored and we can once again celebrate the progress of decades of faithful organizing for the full freedom to vote and access to the ballot that are our basic human rights. Let us hold fast to one another and commit to the work ahead until that day.
Amen.
Further Reading
