An Interfaith Litany for Trans Day of Remembrance

The Human Rights Campaign reports that 2021 has been the most deadly year on record so far for our Transgender siblings in the USA. This year 45 Transgender people have been murdered as a result of anti-trans violence. November 13-19 is Trans Awareness week, and November 20 will mark the 22nd annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. Read about Transgender Day of Remembrance here. 

I have written this litany for interfaith gatherings happening this week. And my particular hope is that Christians will wake up to the plight of our Trans siblings, made in the image of God, and lend their collective weight to the effort of creating a safe world for them. 

Also, I write this prayer to be read aloud among gatherings of people, most of whom I assume will not be trans. Where noted, please us alternative “we/our” pronouns in place of “they/their” if that makes more sense for your group. I could not figure a way to pray for and about my trans siblings without it feeling at least somewhat “othering” toward them - toward you my beloved human family. It is not my intention to other, but to embrace. If I have misstepped in any of the language in this prayer, I sincerely ask for correction. 

It is with great joy that we celebrate our transgender siblings (1), 
And great grief that we mourn the violence done to them.
We give thanks for each of our trans kindred 
Who embody the uncategorizable and boundary-defining nature of the Divine. 
Like all of humanity, they* too are made in the Divine image, 
Reflecting the Divine imprint. 

We remember our trans siblings who have been lost to violence, 
Unjustly sacrificed on the altar of society’s hatred and intolerance. 
[We confess our society’s indifference and un-love, 
And our own complicity in allowing these tragedies to continue. 
We ask that forgiveness and justice bear fruit in us. 
We are sorry. ] (1)
We honor them and send love to their spirits,
With prayers for their peace and well-being.

We set the intention to do better:
Provide safety and care, 
Nourishment and acceptance, 
To the most unique and vulnerable among us, 
And to normalize their* place in our communities, 
Cherishing the ways they* teach us (2) about goodness and love. 

We ask for wisdom in going about creating a world 
That is safe and welcoming for humans of all kinds, 
Knowing that when the world is safe for trans people, 
It is safer for all of Earth’s children. 

We ask that the minds and hearts of all people on Earth
Will be open to practicing kindness, hospitality, friendship, and love
Toward those among us who bear the Divine image in uncommon or surprising ways;
And that our governments and systems will work for their protection, 
Undoing patterns of oppression and violence,
Fostering liberation and joy for every human being. 

May our transgender family be safe, healed, provisioned, and happy, 
Sharing in the abundance of Earth,
The blessings of nature, joy, community, and freedom, 
And the blessing of home. 

May it be so. 

*Exchange they/their pronouns for we/our pronouns if the group praying the prayer is made up of primarily Trans people.
1) Exchange “our transgender siblings” for “our community” if the group praying the prayer is made up of primarily Trans people.
2)Omit the bracketed section if the group praying the prayer is made up of primarily Trans people.
3) Exchange us for “the world” if the group praying the prayer is made up of primarily Trans people.

Proper 19 (Year B, 2021): Litany for Welcoming Wisdom

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This week’s Lectionary texts introduce us to the aspect of God personified as Lady Wisdom: a bold, loud, generous feminine figure who offers her counsel to whomever will accept it, and her presence to whomever gives her hospitality.

Perhaps this will resonate with you: as I navigate the endlessly complex issues and problems of the day - pandemic response, racial reckoning and dismantling white supremacy, smashing the patriarchy, the current abortion uproar in Texas, pastoring people who are restructuring their faith paradigms, figuring out how to do good work without burning out, and so many other daily and far-reaching complexities - I NEED Mama Wisdom. I need her with me.

So I set my inner table as hospitably as ever I can. And I invite her in, intending never to refuse her counsel.

God, awaken our spiritual ears
To learn as people who are good at being taught, (1)
As people who are comfortable with admitting when we’re wrong,
As people who can confront our own biases,
As people capable of sitting with paradox,
As people who understand nuance….

Litany for Afghanistan

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This is a prayer for Afghanistan as that nation is in the midst of great turmoil and fear, in light of the US withdrawal after 20 years of occupation and war, and the return of the rule of the Taliban.

God, we remember to you those suffering in Afghanistan:
Non-combatants in fear for their lives and livelihoods, 
Women and girls historically abused and oppressed by the Taliban, 
Troops and workers watching the dissolution of decades of work, 
Soldiers mourning lost comrades, 
All who have worked and hoped for a better future for Afghanistan. 

We don’t claim to understand everything about what’s happening there,
But we know pain and chaos when we see it. 
The people of Afghanistan are our family; 
When they hurt, we hurt. 

God, bring peace and comfort to the Afghan people. 
Let the land no longer be a place of war and conflict. 
Bring just government and leaders who are fair and upright. 
Let inequality and oppression be relics of the past. 
Upend the cause of the unjust and destroy the plans of the wicked.
Restore the nation of Afghanistan to its truest beauty, it’s sacred home.

Forgive us for ways we, our government, our military, have been complicit in the chaos there.
Guide our government and military authorities in the path of insight (1).
May they learn to wield power in ways that help and not harm, 
To prevent war rather than perpetuate it, 
To know when to intervene on behalf of the vulnerable,
And when to mind their own business. 

We pray, here and abroad, for people and governments
That act justly and love mercy, 
That work persistently for the good of all, 
That protect and serve the vulnerable,
That uplift the oppressed,
That root out injustice. 

May God’s good community, your Kin-dom family,
Come on earth as it is in heaven. 

Amen

1) Proverbs 9:6

Litany for a Nation Brutalized by Violence

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I have written this litany as an offering. Finding words for the depth and breadth of what the collective, and in particular the Black and Asian communities, are experiencing (and have for centuries) in terms of violence feels impossible. But I feel our communities need to speak aloud about this to God, together. Not for some hollow "unity." But for sacred lament and consciousness.

I have tried to articulate these far-reaching problems - gun violence, violence against Black, Brown, Indigenous, Asian folks, school and mass shootings, and more in this prayer of lament. But the task feels monumental. It is imperfect, but something is better than nothing for putting words and action to this lament. .

It is my hope that we will be drawn in to peace, and toward a non-violent, equitable future, toward Heaven on Earth. All beings safe. All beings provided for. All beings held accountable to love. Amen. Amen. May it be so.

God, we bring to you our lament 
And our sorrow. 

We are a people undone, 
Brutalized by violence:
By gun violence, 
By police violence, 
By violence against Black and Brown people, 
By violence against Indigenous and Asian people. 

Our streets are blood-soaked, 
And our history tainted by supremacist evil. 
We are crying out in lament, 
And we know that you weep with us. 

We grieve every lost life. 
We grieve every orphaned child. 
We grieve alongside every mourning family. 
We grieve every trauma and tragedy. 

We reject every system that makes some of us safe at the expense of the lives of others. 
We reject white supremacy and police militarization.
We reject government-sanctioned execution. 
We reject systems of mass incarceration. 
We reject systems that prioritize whiteness over all other people.
We reject systems of poverty and inequity.  

We lament; and we gather our power. 
We combine our resources to re-imagine this world,
To abolish inequity.
To create a safe and harmonious reality for every person. 
We join with those who have been working for justice tirelessly for decades. 
We apply our energy, money, time, and voices to this work. 

May the government of this nation be moved to right action, 
May the churches of this nation be spurred to work for justice. 
May the local and community leaders of this nation create positive change. 
May the economic systems of this nation cease to reward evil.  
May those who remain asleep or apathetic to injustice become conscious participants for good.
May we as individuals hold our leaders, government, and ourselves accountable to the work.

Let the fire of justice burn in every heart
So that every mother’s child may live in peace and safety.

Amen. 

Litany for Healthcare Workers During COVID-19

God, we are besieged.
The numbers of ill and dying are mounting up.
The emotional rollercoaster is taking its toll. 
The disruption to every aspect of life is undeniable. 

As a nation, we were unprepared for such a crisis,
And our reserves are limited. 

We lift to you those most affected:
The sick, and their caregivers,
Those doctors, nurses, and support people doing all they can
With what resources they have, to save lives. 

We ask for your mercy to be upon them,
That they may be kept safe from disease,
Filled with professional wisdom,
Given bodily nourishment and rest,
Provided with adequate equipment,
Energized by supernatural means,
Supported by prayers of the people,
Relieved by more hands joining the work,
Resourced by state and federal leadership,
And that this crisis would come to a swift end.

We know many caring professionals are at the end of their strength,
So we pray that your spirit would meet them,
That your strength would become theirs,
That your love would bolster them. 

We pray for the awakening of all people
So that each may do their part to stop the spread.
We pray for our country and our world,
That we may come into a more Christ-like consciousness. 

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Amen. 

Lent 2 (Year A): Litany for Beginner’s Mind

The story of Nicodemus put me in mind of the Buddhist tradition of Beginner’s Mind. Jesus tells Nicodemus that he needs newly-born eyes to see the Kingdom of God in action. Jesus tells him that he needs re-born understanding to be able to perceive spiritual/heavenly things. He needs fresh eyes, fresh understanding. If we want to see and the truth about Jesus and his reflection of the image of God, and the Kin-dom God is inviting us to participate in, we need re-born consciousness. 

The concept of Beginner’s Mind is similar - to strive to keep the humble perspective of a beginning learner, to hang on to the fresh eyes of the uninitiated and unindoctrinated. So that we might see something other than what we’ve seen before. So that we can understand on a deeper level, with a higher consciousness. I believe this is what Jesus was referring to when he said in another text, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Unless we relinquish our old consciousness and understanding in favor of a better one, we won’t be able to see the kingdom of heaven right in front of us. 

Last week’s litany explored the concept of Non-dualism, another overlapping concept among Wisdom Traditions. This week’s litany explores what Christianity has called “being born from above” and “childlike faith,” and the similarities I see between that and what Buddhist traditions have called “shoshin” or “beginner’s mind.”

God, as Christ has spoken, we know we must somehow be “born from above” (1),
We know we need fresh understanding,
Must learn to perceive with heaven’s consciousness,
Learn to set aside our preconceived ideas.
This new awareness
Is an endless beginning. 

Litany for Giving Back

Hi! Most of my litanies appear on my Patreon as part of my 2019 #yearofwritingsustainably, but every now and again I’m posting one for everyone. This is my gift that I hope you, dear reader, will use and enjoy and share widely.

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If you are unaware of the history of the Thanksgiving holiday, now is a great time to educate yourself. This prayer is borne out of the hope that we can resist colonization's forces in our minds, dinner tables, and conversations; making way for a new level of gratitude that resists entitlement, white supremacy, and earth-exploitation.

God, we acknowledge that everything we think we possess,
Was always yours to begin with;
That the land we dwell in was inhabited by Native Peoples before us,
Who minded its welfare and appreciated it;
That the water we use daily has passed through plant, animal, and human,
Before it ever reached our bodies;
That the food on our tables is a gift of the earth,
Dependent, as we are, upon the earth’s bounty and health.

We didn’t do anything to deserve what we have been given,
And yet we strive to own and consume ever more and more.
Our consumption
Is consuming us.
Our destruction
Is destroying us.  

We waste our blessings,
And toss away our gifts,
Then complain that we don’t have enough,
And pretend we can’t share. 

Awaken gratitude in our hearts, Oh God,
That we may become mindful people;
Mindful of the least privileged among us,
Mindful of future generations,
Mindful of history’s lessons,
Mindful of the earth.

All the resources of earth are yours, God.
And all the people, plants, and creatures.
Every good and perfect thing
Sprang from your imagination.
So we open our hands
And give them all back to you,
In hopes that we might come to know wisdom
Once we are empty.

Amen

Litany for Faith Renovation

This past Sunday at Peace of Christ Church, I preached a word about moving our framework for evaluating our faith paradigms from a metaphor of “Deconstruction” to a metaphor of “Renovation”. I shared my personal “4 pillars of conviction” that hold my spirituality and faith up these days, after many years of renovation. You can hear the sermon here.

This litany accompanies that sermon. I’m happy to share the full litany freely here with you. Please read, pray, and share the link with people for whom it might be helpful. If you use my liturgies regularly or would like to help support my ongoing work, https://www.patreon.com/franpratt.

God, we are thankful for the freedom we have to live authentically.
To choose how we live and what we believe,
To determine how to put our faith into practice,
And to select the practices that best serve us and the world.

We thank you for the gift of the Spirit of God in us,
Who leads and guides us,
Who fills our eyes with a vision of wholeness for all,
And fills our hearts with super-human love.

We know we have work to do
To renovate our own souls,
To learn to live from a place of contemplation and compassion,
To reject our ego and it’s traps;
So that we may send out into the world redemptive love,
Justice work,
Christ-consciousness,
Peace-making.

We know that the healing of the world starts in our own souls,
Begins with an inner posture of humility,
Grows with curiosity and risk-taking faith,
And from there, moves mountains of pain.

Love and suffering are our teachers here*,
And we embrace our mission to grow and learn.
Help us as we do the work of renovation
Of our faith, our practice, and our understanding.
Keep us to your Way, which you’ve shown us in Christ’s body.
And wrap us all in your transforming love.

Amen

*this is an oft-repeated idea in many of Richard Rohr’s books.

Litany for Breaking Down Walls

This litany was originally posted on Godspace. I wrote it for their very timely Lenten series on Breaking Down Walls. May it inspire you to embrace wall-breaking as a spiritual practice.

As always, if my work resonates with you I invite you to become part of my Patreon, and to pick up a copy of my book of litanies.

God, for centuries we have imagined that between us and you
Were distance and difference,
Silence and judgement,
And ultimately, walls.

But now we’re learning that wall-building
Is a uniquely human response
To fear,
To pain,
To vulnerability,
To a feeling of separation.

If we can forget the idea of separation,
Perhaps we can stop building walls on its behalf.
Oh God, may we let love have free reign
To build something more imaginative than walls.

See, we think our separateness is a given,
But you are constantly urging us toward a different perspective:
That nothing can separate us from you
Nothing created, nothing imagined, nothing contrived -
That you are, always and forever, for better and for worse,
In every circumstance, in every situation
Together with us.
You are God-With-Us.

And that togetherness, that persistence,
That in-it-for-the-long-haul relentless with-ness,
Is part of your personality, a characteristic of you;
Part of your everlasting love,
That is always building new spaces
And breaking down walls.

Amen

Epiphany Week 7 (Year C): Litany for Loving Kinship

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This week’s Gospel reading includes Luke’s account of the Beatitudes. This account is also known as “blessings and woes,” as it differs from Matthew’s Beatitudes significantly. However, the spirit is the same, and they are incidentally not dissimilar to Mary’s Magnificat from a few chapters earlier in Luke. “Woe to you who are rich,” echoes Christ’s Mother’s words from years earlier: “he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty” (1).

I’ve been exploring themes of privilege and connectedness in this Epiphany series, and this week’s “blessings and woes” fit right in. Woe to you who are privileged, for your privilege blinds you. Blessed are you who who understand that we are all connected - by suffering, by need, by humanity… and that we are the very ones we judge to be lowly.

If we let them, this teaching of Jesus has the capacity to awaken us from our deadness, our un-compassion, our judgement, and into acceptance, forgiveness, and love. May it be so, and may we pray with humility and willingness to be transformed.

God, help us to cast aside all judgement,
All fear of Other,
All attachment to privilege,
All lack of compassion;
And to step instead into the glorious abundance of your community…

Love and Gratitude,

f

1) Luke 1:5

Epiphany Week 4 (Year C): Litany for Parts of a Whole

I find it interesting that the Lectionary always seems to speak so keenly to the current moment. The past few days I’ve contemplated the state of things, and Dr. King’s legacy, and how the Church (capital C) is doing, and how the country is doing. And I attended an MLK memorial/celebration march and service at a local sibling church, which was inspiring in some ways, but sobering in others. We have so far to go with dismantling white supremacy in this country, and within the American Church; and that is not a new or disputable fact.

What I’m learning from listening to and reading BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) activists is that we white people need to listen humbly, educate ourselves and our communities, and support the work. And a great way to support the work is by financially contributing to organizations that uplift BIPOC communities and meet their needs. I’m doing this as I can, and I encourage my white siblings to as well. Here are a few I’m particularly inspired by*:

Equal Justice Initiative
Million Hoodies
A Voice for the Unheard
Black Women’s Health Initiative
Partnership with Native Americans

I’ve written this week’s litany with the Lectionary selections in mind, which remind us of our unchangeable status as parts of a whole, as siblings, and as co-laborers. What hurts one sector of our Beloved Community, hurts us all. What uplifts, uplifts us all. Christ’s stated mission in Luke 4 is our mission, too. And…

We are all part of each other.
Our connectedness is unbreakable.
Any separation is only imagined.

If you’re looking for other litanies surrounding these topics, please check out
Litany for Justice and Equality
Litany for MLK Day
Litany for Addressing Racism
Litany for Embracing Race

*Even small amounts matter. But I know, not everyone can contribute financially. Do what you can, educate yourself via the multitude of free resources in local libraries and the internet, be curious, be humble. And may God bless your efforts.

Litany for Growing

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At the turn of the year, many of us set aside time to reflect and set intentions for the coming year. How do we want to be? What do we want to carry forward? What do we need to let go of? What changes do we want to see made in the world that we might be part of.

I personally have a going list of hopes, dreams, and intentions. There are things I want to accomplish, changes I want to make, goals I want to meet, and ways I know I need to grow and evolve. My intentions range from the physical (improve fitness level, etc), to career (make my writing practice sustainable!), to spiritual, emotional, and relational; to collective and societal.

So, if you are on that journey of looking forward and speaking and imagining new things into being, I invite you to pray this prayer asking for patience to play the long game.

God, we stretch out our arms,
Reaching toward heaven.
We stretch out our hearts,
Reaching toward the timeless.
We stretch out our vision,
Reaching beyond our horizons.

There’s so much to be done.
So much change to be made.
That sometimes it’s hard to remember
That everything is as it should be:
Collectively, we are growing.
We are evolving.
And despite evidence to the contrary,
Things are progressing.

So we ask for help in being still and present
When the world is hectic;
And we ask for help in taking right action
When we are overwhelmed.
We lay ourselves bare before you
Nothing kept hidden or held back,
Trusting you to meet us in our need
And provide for us in our process.

May all we do,
And all we work toward,
Every imperceptible expansion,
Every slow millimeter of growth,
Make your community more welcoming,
And the world more truly peaceful (1).

.
Amen.

1. Jeremiah 6:14

Litany for Year-End Reflection

God, in everything that’s happened this year,
Both good and bad,
We know that you were with us,
Always loving and present.

We’re spending time looking backwards, in hindsight,
Assessing our own progress and growth;
What worked, what didn’t,
What helped, what hindered.

And we’re spending time looking forwards, toward the new year,
Setting intentions and voicing our hopes
What we’d like to accomplish and improve,
What we’d like to experience and enjoy.

But we are also learning
To be in this moment,
To breathe deeply into our bodies
Right here, right now.

Because we know that the doorway to the Community of Heaven
Is right now -
Accessible always, no matter the circumstance,
Timeless and reliable.

And so we celebrate the year -
Its beginnings and its endings,
Its triumphs and its failures,
Its gifts and its receipts -
By turning our attention to you, Great Present,
Divine Attention, Conscious Now,
And leaning into the eternal flow of Love
As Christ has taught us.

We offer gratitude for each experience
For each person,
And we put our hope in the continued revealing
Of the peace, joy, and love of God.

Amen

Litany for Appreciation

Happy Thanksgiving Week! Everyone is talking about my favorite things this week: Gratitude. But I actually want to talk about the thing I consider the precursor to gratitude: Appreciation.

I have heard and read a lot of spiritual teachers from many different backgrounds say something to this effect: if you can get your mind/attitude/energy into a mode of appreciation, you can change your life because then you start to change how you perceive your life. Teachers from all walks of life say: appreciation is a precursor to gratitude, and gratitude is a precursor to love.

A patron recently called my attention to this passage in the Gospel of Luke, in which we see this rare attitude of appreciation illuminated:

11 On the way to Jerusalem Jesus[a] was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he entered a village, ten lepers[b] approached him. Keeping their distance, 13 they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were made clean. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. 16 He prostrated himself at Jesus’[c] feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus asked, “Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? 18 Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.”

Ten are healed. One expresses appreciation. And I get the sense that when Jesus says “your faith has made you well” he means more than just physical wellness. I have a hunch that Jesus is acknowledging this attitude of gratitude to be a deeper inroad to wholeness; and that, somehow, appreciation is a bold exercise of faith. But here’s a thing I notice: to appreciate something, we first have to be paying attention to it. And attention is a costly thing - it takes intention and practice and deep looking. It takes what many spiritual teachers call Mindfulness.

In her book _Grateful_, Diana Butler Bass says, “Gratitude is not only an emotion; it is something we do. It is like tending a garden. It takes planting and watering and weeding. It takes time and attention. It takes learning. It takes routine. But, eventually, the ground yields, shoots come forth, and thanksgiving blooms.”

I wonder if all ten of those ex-lepers felt gratitude, but only one had any experience with doing gratitude? And if the teachers are right and the roadmap looks like this: (Attention → Appreciation → Gratitude → Love), then what does that mean for how we go about cultivating love and loving action in our lives? It’s a pretty good question, I think. Here’s a prayer for the roadmap:

God, as we seek to live lives of intentional love,
We acknowledge the importance of paying attention
To the deep self,
To the external lesson,
To the need and the want,
To the fulfillment and the calling,
To the disease and the healing,
To the existence and the blessing.

We are learning how to cultivate and grow love and loving action:
Starting with attention and observation,
Moving into appreciation and thankfulness,
Letting gratitude shift us into love.

We know that love is the foundation of the universe -
That the deepest particle,
The inmost kernel,
The alpha and the omega, is love.

But sometimes, in the midst of everything happening to us,
Love is kind of hard to get to.
So we are learning to start somewhere even simpler:
By paying attention,
By offering appreciation,
By letting appreciation lead to gratitude.

And we know that if we can get in gratitude’s groove and vicinity
It can show us the way to love,
Even in murky waters,
Even in complicated situations.

So, boldly, resisting the voices that tell us to duck and run,
We do our first act of faith,
Which is to appreciate even the meagerest of blessings,
And offer praise and thanksgiving. Amen

An Interfaith Litany for the United States (January 2018)

God* we ask for help and intervention in this moment.
Give us ears to hear, eyes to see, and hands to work for good.
Hear now our requests for aid and wisdom.
Lord*, hear our prayer.

For the sick and infirm
We pray to the Lord*.
For the homeless and hungry
We pray to the Lord.
For the poor and destitute
We pray to the Lord.
For the children of low-income families without health insurance
We pray to the Lord.
For the Dreamers, brought to the US as children and now facing possible deportation
We pray to the Lord.
For those affected by the ongoing epidemic of gun violence
We pray to the Lord.
For those unjustly imprisoned
We pray to the Lord.
For all who experience societal injustice
We pray to the Lord.

For Republicans in congress
We pray to the Lord.
For Democrats in congress
We pray to the Lord.
For Donald Trump
We pray to the Lord.
For Mike Pence
We pray to the Lord.
For justices, judges, and members of the judicial system
We pray to the Lord.
For people employed by government agencies
We pray to the Lord.
For those facing danger in the military
We pray to the Lord.
For those working for justice and aid organizations
We pray to the Lord.
For those working for law enforcement and security agencies
We pray to the Lord.
For Robert Mueller and his team
We pray to the Lord.
For journalists working to disseminate truth
We pray to the Lord.
For those who are speaking truth to power
We pray to the Lord.
That all these people, ourselves included, might have the eyes of their hearts enlightened
We pray to the Lord.

Give us compassion, oh God
To see beyond our own safety and comfort,
To work to heal and help the people of our land,
And find unity in our shared humanity.
May truth and justice win the day
And love and mercy win the hearts of all.

Amen

*I intend for this prayer to be ecumenical and interfaith. Please feel free to substitute whatever address for God (Spirit, Universe, Allah, etc) is your preference.