World in Prayer

Sharing in God’s loving compassion for all

Prayers for the United States

Prayers naming the United States have followed storms, tornadoes, wildfires and floods across many states, along with elections and political tension, gun violence, and questions of migration and race. Health, mental health and the well-being of ordinary households appear often, as do thanksgivings for its landscapes and wild places.

Glimmers of Grace: Prayers for Elections, Gaza, the Spanish Floods and Sudan’s Women (October 31, 2024)

Loving God, We know that our world is often uncertain. Many nations have recently faced elections, such as British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and New Brunswick in Canada, and Japan, where the Liberal Democratic Party, which has held power almost continually since 1955, lost its single-party majority at Sunday’s election. We also know that in some places, elections […]

Do Not Conform to the Pattern of This World: Prayers for Gaza, Beirut, Cuba and the Travel Moon (October 24, 2024)

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will. — Romans 12:2 O Lord, renew our minds and with that clarity set us toward your perfect will. […]

Finding Joy Amid Violence: A Prayer of Thanks for Peacebuilders in Colombia, Lebanon and India (October 17, 2024)

In today’s prayer we celebrate the words of Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s blessing found in The Book of Joy. We are thankful for the Archbishop’s willingness to convey God’s love for all of us and his extraordinary ability to find joy amidst violence and destruction. May his words nurture the goodness that is stirring within us. […]

Lord, Hear Our Prayers: World Communion Sunday, Hurricane Milton, and the Headlines of War (October 10, 2024)

“All who eat and drink without discerning the body, eat and drink judgment against themselves.” (1 Corinthians 11:29) “Even when our cups run dry, God’s grace overflows. Even when our plates are empty, God’s generosity overflows. And even when our hearts are barren, God’s love overflows. Friends, you have been called and claimed by the […]

Co-Guardians of a Fragile Planet: A Prayer in the Season of Creation for Floods, Drought, and Hunger (September 26, 2024)

“Prayer is nothing else than a sense of God’s presence.” ~ Brother Laurence (lay brother, Paris, France 1614-1691) “Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God.” ~ Mother Theresa of Calcutta (1910-1997) “We have to pray with our eyes on God and not on the difficulties.” ~ Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) “I (Jesus) tell you, […]

Gather Us In: Prayers for Israel and Lebanon, Haiti’s Elections and Storm Boris (September 19, 2024)

“How do you choose which news to include in the prayers?” That’s a common question those of us who take turns writing the weekly prayers get asked. Sometimes, it’s more pointed: “Why did you mention this, but not that?” But there’s neither magic nor malice involved – we are all too human. We gather news, from a […]

Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace: Prayers for Burkina Faso, Political Prisoners and Syria (September 12, 2024)

God in heaven, we pause to remember the many communities currently subject to war and political suppression. We pray for an end to violence and the establishment of freedom of political expression in all countries. Father Bertin Namboho, bursar of Nouna Diocese, western Burkina Faso,  describes extremist groups in control of approximately 40% of the […]

A World Without School Shootings: A Prayer After Georgia and for Migrants in the Channel (September 5, 2024)

God of all seasons, of all people, of each other… may we be lifted into a new season and a new way of being in your world. A world without school shootings, as another has just taken place in Georgia, United States. A world without war and conflict, as this past week a 16-year old […]

A Jubilee Time for Earth: Prayers for Floods in China and Bangladesh and the Pacific Islands (August 29, 2024)

The Season of Creation – celebrated annually by many  Christian denominations from September 1 (the Day of Prayer for Creation) through October 4 (the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi) – invites us to see the divine presence in all of creation. It invites us to listen deeply to the cries of the earth and […]

Let God’s People Go: A Prayer Remembering the Slave Trade and All Held Captive Today (August 22, 2024)

Editor’s note: 23 August is recognized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) as the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition. This date was chosen as an acknowledgement of the revolution in Saint Domingue, today the Republic of Haiti, that began in late August 1791 as a […]