Reckoning with our history—with its terrors and triumphs—is an act of loyalty.
Deepening Our Engagement
A 1-minute version of the video is available on YouTube. Consider linking to it from your church website, e-newsletter, or social media.
Prayer
God of all time and space,
When we reflect on our church’s past, and our country’s past,
sometimes we are filled with anger at injustices, policies of overt exclusion, and all the ways that some people were pushed to the edges of society.
We thank you, O God, that you are with people in past and present. In our times of struggle and lamentation, you are there, accompanying us through our most difficult times.
O God, when we reflect on our church’s past, and our country’s past,
sometimes we are filled with joy at anniversaries, and events, and milestones, and all the ways we noticed you moving among us.
We thank you, O God, that you are with people in past and present. In our times of celebration and jubilation, you are there, accompanying us through our joy-filled times.
God of all time and space,
We give thanks that you are with us, calling us to be community together.
And yet sometimes we struggle with how to be together, how to build authentic communities, and how to be in equitable relationships together.
Help us to have the courage to challenge exclusion and unfair laws.
Help us not to only glorify the past.
Help us to face the ways in which we hold power and privilege.
God of all time and space,
We pray that we will work together to co-create faithful churches, communities, a country, and the world where everyone feels that they belong.
May we be inspired by your Son, Jesus, who broke down barriers of race, culture, gender, and class and worked towards a future where everyone was a welcome member of the community.
And may we be inspired by the prophet Jeremiah, who wrote to a community of people who had been exiled., excluded, and displaced and shared these words: “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope” (Jer. 29:11).
We know that we cannot rewrite the past, but with your Spirit’s guidance, may we move into a more welcoming future for all.
Amen.
Congregational Responses
- Reflect on the history of your community of faith! Consider its history and any monuments, plaques, or memorials. Who or what do these symbols glorify? Examine your church building—consider the art, any stained glass, images, or names. How is history carried in your church? Who is glorified? What stories do these symbols tell about race, culture, and belonging?
- How does your church honour its anniversary? Consider both the good parts and any potential bad parts of your church history. What’ is in your church’s history? What is in your church’s past or present about racial exclusion or overt policies?
Credit
Prayer and congregational responses: Adele Halliday
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