I couldn’t let today go by without posting a prayer in response to the invasion of Ukraine. We are all, I think, reeling from the news that greeted us this morning that Russian troops were advancing rapidly into Ukrainian territory and that shelling of towns and cities had already begun. War in Europe is something that most of us had hoped never to see in our lifetime, and it’s hard to believe that President Putin, after the horrors of war that Russia endured in the First and Second World Wars, could ever have countenanced waging war himself. Yet he has done just that, at a stroke not only overturning the lives of the Ukrainian people but also throwing the balance of world power and security into the melting pot. Suddenly the possibility of war feels a potential threat to us all. Our heart bleeds for the countless innocent people caught up in the conflict, everything they know and love in danger of being lost. Pray for them. Pray for world leaders. Pray for an end to Russian aggression. And pray for peace.
A prayer in response to the invasion of Ukraine
Lord, hear our prayer for the world at this time of conflict.
Hear our prayer for the people of Ukraine,
faced suddenly by unprovoked aggression,
by the threat of death and destruction,
by the knowledge that their lives,
their security,
their future
have been changed overnight,
nothing the same as it had seemed,
everything turned upside down.
Hear our prayer for those seeking to defend their country,
to preserve their way of life,
to keep safe their loved ones,
to resist tyranny;
and hear our prayer also for casualties –
those already injured or killed through gunfire or rocket attacks,
and those tending the wounded and dying.
Hear our prayer for the president of Ukraine;
and for leaders of government the world over,
as they ponder their response to this crisis,
as they strive to work together,
and as they seek to impose meaningful sanctions
that may yet cause Russia to pull back from the brink.
Hear our prayer for an end to the invasion,
an end to fighting,
an end to war,
and for respect to be given to the Ukrainian people’s right to self-determination.
And hear our prayer finally for people everywhere,
that this conflict,
this senseless and unjustified attack,
will not escalate,
leading slowly but inexorably not just to war in Europe,
but to a world war,
and the potential deaths of hundreds of thousands.
Lord God,
hear our prayer,
and grant that somehow there may yet be peace.
Amen.