A Prayer For This Present Anger
A Prayer For This Present Anger
By Rev. Debra McKnight
Every week Your people say, “earth as it is in heaven.”
But Oh My God, what fresh hell we make.
Every week we pray, “Earth as it is in heaven.”
But watch our injustice system grind death out of life,
anything but restorative or accident.
And those sworn to protect rain down homicide on black and brown neighbors
in bed, in cars, eating ice-cream
in their own house, on the street in broad daylight
and God knows more places than have ever been seen.
White supremacy poisons the marrow of our all to fragile democracy
and we must love power and privilege and violence more than life.
Every week ‘good Christians’ pray, “Earth as it is in heaven.”
But we love guns and the power they make,
we love them more than our children in schools
and our friends at the theater and shoppers at the mall.
We love them more than ordinary errands like groceries or loud, rocking concerts
we love them big and powerful and military grade.
We love them beyond any reason at all.
Every week we pray out loud, “Earth as it is in heaven.”
But our neighbors sink under crushing medical debt
while insurance profit’s soar
and providers run ragged,
and the healing and the health and the care our whole system needs is
so, so, so far away.
Every week Your people pray, Earth as it is in heaven.
Did we, Your people, mumble or stumble or cross our fingers?
OH My God, do you wonder what on earth we are doing for heaven’s sake?
The rich get richer, while we debate poverty's wage,
Desperate children seek refuge and sacred souls long for sanctuary
but we prefer walls and rules that shout, “they shouldn’t have come here;
the abundance on our tables in not to share.”
We sing, “earth as it is in heaven” but children come last in funding and first in cuts,
the earth is a consumable and packaged for re-sale,
science is up for debate, masks are political
and even the bees and butterflies need a campaign to pollinate.
Earth as it is in heaven, you taught.
Earth as it is in heaven, we learned.
Earth as it is in heaven, we prayed.
Sweet Jesus, You call us to live a different way
to pray with more than words,
to feed and heal, to tend the wounds, center the vulnerable
and touch the untouchable (consensually of course),
to turn the tables of injustice and bare witness to the crucified
that there may be resurrection, abundance and life.
Right here and right now, Earth as it is in heaven.
You call us to be a part of Your relentless Love that makes all things new.
Grant us the courage to pray the prayer you taught us to pray
and mean every (expletive) word. (prayer’s choice)
Right here and right now, Earth as it is in heaven.
In the name of the one who taught us how to pray, Amen.