Here’s an
opening dialogue suitable for the start of worship on Peace Sunday, or another
occasion that focuses on our call to be peacemakers. It comes from
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Opening Litany
Christ sets
before us this day life and death
and calls
for us to choose life that we and our children may live.
We
accept life, so teach us to live.
Christ sets
before us this day the challenge to seek peace and to pursue it.
We
accept the challenge of peace, so enable us to pursue it.
Christ sets
before us this day the call to be peacemakers;
to
proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to a suffering world.
We gather
to embody God’s love and desire for peace for all people;
to hear
and give voice to creation’s cry for justice and peace.
We gather
to name and confront the influence of evil within and among us;
to
repent of our silence and complicity with the powers of chaos and death.
We gather
to join with the oppressed and troubled people of the world
in the
struggle for liberation and peace;
to work
for justice, healing and wholeness of life.
We gather
to embrace the unity of God’s people and Christ’s church;
to make
peace a reality.
~ from Prayer
for Peace, adapted from materials from the World Council of Churches
International Day of Peace. Produced by the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America. Copyright © 2009 World Council of Churches.
Posted on the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America website. www.elca.org/
