Dear God of Sorrow and Love—

Are there no places of safety from hate? Are there no sanctuaries from racism? Are there no walls fortified with love that can withstand violence?

We pray this day for the nine members of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church of Charleston who were senselessly shot down in their house of worship.

We pray for strength for those who have lost their loved ones, have lost their pastor, have lost the sanctity of religious community, have lost their lives.

So much sorrow, pain, and loss. So many tragic and violent acts, one following the next. So much grief.

Please help us to hold hope as a flickering flame. Help us to build solidarity, to witness, to grasp hands, to build courage, to do the right thing in the name of Love.

Amen