A Prayer for Belfast  

 

In 2013, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, then Lord Mayor of Belfast, commissioned a prayer for the City of Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Throughout the year prayer vigils were held throughout the city so that the people of Belfast could join in prayer together.  The revolutionary part of the prayer meetings lies in the meaning of that word - together.  Gladys Ganiel offers the following reflections on a prayer vigil held December 11, 2013:

 

"Those of us who work or live in North Belfast know that the claiming of space for political and sectarian purposes is a common practice, and the point is to exclude others from that space. 

And while I acknowledge that Christmas carol singing may exclude non-Christians, I appreciate the organizers’ intent to be as inclusive as possible and to welcome others to share a space in an ‘interface’ area….

As Northern Ireland prepares for how we ‘deal with the past,’ I am struck by the theme of reconciliation that runs through the prayer. 

It is a vision of reconciliation that does not settle for a ‘peaceful co-existence’ or a ‘benign apartheid.’ And it is a vision of reconciliation that is orientated towards a future together. Events like the Prayer Vigil for Belfast are just one example of what such a future together might look like.”

 

A Prayer for Belfast

God of love whose love streams

unceasingly and relentlessly to all, we cry to

you for our city.

We pray for peace on our streets, for

economic well-being, for understanding

across our differences.

Build us as one community, though diverse,

that being reconciled to you we might be

reconciled to one another.

Lord, turn our hearts to you that your glory

might dwell in this city

In the name of Jesus, who is Lord of all.

Amen