For the voiceless, for the innocent, for the vulnerable, for the least powerful among us, and those most in need of our protection.

We pray for the children,
Who depend on adults to make their world safe, to create networks of care and learning, and to provide the schools and doctors and counselors and teachers that support them in their growth.

We pray for the children,

Who do not understand partisan politics, who are not registered to vote, who are not interested in debating points, but who have a very deep interest in clean air and pure water and a world without war.

We pray for the children,

Who trust their elders to exercise wisdom, to act responsibly, but who are so often disappointed and betrayed in that trust.

We pray for the children,

Who are satisfied with so little-a warm blanket, a roof overhead, a good pair of sneakers-but who often lack even the barest of necessities.
We pray for the children,

For the ones on honor rolls and the ones on drugs, for the well-adjusted and those who have been battered and traumatized by life.

We pray for the children,

For those tormented by bullies at school and for the bullies themselves, tormented by demons we cannot even imagine.

We pray for the children,

For girls and boys who see far too much sex and violence on TV and are assaulted and seduced with unhealthy images of femininity and masculinity.

We pray for the children,

Who remind us of all that is tender and playful in ourselves, and of our own capacity for laughter and for love.
We pray for the children,

Who contain all the promise of generations to come and all the possibilities of tomorrow.

Help us, we pray, to be the guardians and advocates of all children everywhere, with eyes to see that all are children of God.

Amen.