From the not-so-distant past

[dtm]

I don't quite know why I'm still awake as I really should be asleep, since I have to wake up in about 5 hours to make my weekly commute to NYC, but I am. Since I am awake anyway, I thought I would share something I ran across today while tidying up my personal web account. This is something I wrote September 18th, 2001, according to the filesystem. I don't know if I ever linked to it from anywhere except possibly a few posts on slashdot, so you can't go find it in the internet wayback machine - you'll just have to trust me that I wrote it then. I've cleaned up a typo or two, added an lj-cut tag, and reduced the level of the heading tag, but it's otherwise as I wrote it then:

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September prayers

Many people recently have been saying "our prayers are with the victims and their families". While that is good, and proper, that's not where prayers should end. Prayer is powerful, and praying that one phrase over and over changes us in ways I am finding gradually more and more ugly.

Therefore, I thought that I should share where my prayers have been this past week.

I pray for those who have died, that they may have rest and peace
in that place where there is no pain nor grief but life eternal

I pray for those who mourn the loss of loved ones,
and for those who wait in uncertainty,
that they may be comforted by their friends, by their neighbors, and by strangers.

I pray for those who search the wreckage and minister to the injured,
that they might find success in their endeavors.

I pray for those who now cower in fear in Afghanistan and elsewhere abroad,
that they may see peace and safety.

I pray for those who are afraid in America simply because their skin is darker than mine,
that their faith in America will not be shattered by racial or religious bigotry.

I pray for those whose anger at this attack has turned into hatred,
that their hearts may be turned back from the brink.

I pray for those who committed these attacks, and for those who helped and assisted them,
for the Lord commands us to pray for our enemies and for those who hate us.

I pray for this nation, and for its leaders,
that we and they may be guided by wisdom and not by vengeance.

Finally, I pray for the world and all its peoples,
for it has already seen far greater tragedies than this.