Oh God, we have gathered here in thy sight and invoked thy presence among us in this sacred space to which we have come not in retreat but rather for renewal. We gather here this day not in escape from the world but rather for revitalized and recharged entry into the world. We gather at the turning point of one week's ending and another's beginning not only to receive blessed reassurance that thou art with us and for us and that we are not abandoned and never alone, but also for retrospective review of our lives and reflection upon all we have seen and heard and experienced, filtered through the purifying prism and clarifying lens of thy Word and will. We come, opening our hearts, our minds, our eyes, and our lives to that illumination and understanding which comes from thee; so that the light of heaven may shine upon our world of headlines and the lucid Word of Life from thee may penetrate the competing chorus of sound bites and the many tongues of printed and electronically conveyed opinion.
The long-awaited legal answer to the painful questions raised by the tragic killing of Amadou Diallo a year ago has come to us in a verdict rendered by a jury empaneled far from the scene of the senseless slaughter. Forty one shots fired by four policemen at a young man, unarmed and innocent, standing in the vestibule of his home in the Bronx have been reduced in number by twenty in the echoed response of a jury forewoman's reading in Albany of the repeated verdict, "Not Guilty."
The tears of joy and relief which flowed from those indicted and their families poured fourth in tandem with the tears of frustration and pain released by the parents of the slain young victim and the tears of rage which filled the eyes of demonstrators in Albany and the Bronx. Such tears, accompanied by the familiar chant, "No justice, no peace," combined to remind us of the testimony of they prophet pleading, "Let justice roll down like the waters and righteous like an ever-flowing stream."
Oh God, may our remembrance of the prophet's words also call forth within us a heightened conviction and renewed commitment to the sanctity of all human life, which transcends individual applications of guilt or innocence in any single courtroom.
Help us, oh God, to rise above understandable feelings of rage to recognize and admit our own complicity in creating the conditions which led to the death of Amadou Diallo, our apathy in the face of the predatory racial profiling in a neighborhood where we do not live, our silence in the face of governmental stereotyping of our fellow members of the human family, and our willingness to let others do the prophet's bidding with regard to the pursuit of justice and mercy, equity and compassion for all.
Oh God, we pray that our gathering in thy presence this day will be an active blessing throughout the coming week. Raise us up and send us forth as those who have been refocused by thy Word, re-centered in thy love, and grounded in faith, empowered by our turning to thee this day to return to the paths of the world on which we walk as active witnesses, obedient servants, and loving disciples.
Hear us now as we lay before thee our private prayers, petitions, and supplications in the silence of the following moments.
All these things we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who taught us to pray, saying:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen
NOTE: See Statement of the General Board of Global Ministries on the Amadou Diallo Verdict.