The Transformative Mystery of Prayer

Beloved in Christ,

Yesterday, I attended the Upper School chapel at Breck School. We began the service with a prayer for Ukraine, which was read in Ukranian by an exchange student from the Czech Republic. I had a chance to visit with her before the service, and listening to her describe her real fears for her homeland was a reminder of both the intensity and scope of the threat the Russian invasion poses. Even for someone who is a junior in high school, the memory of Europe at war looms large. 

I hope that you are praying daily for the people of Ukraine, and for all of Eastern Europe. I hope you are praying for world leaders who have power to make decisions, and for the people of Russia. While all of us here have a limited capacity to influence what is happening, prayer is never a passive act, and if we truly believe what we profess to believe in our life together, we know that prayer is always transformative, even if its transformation is deeply mysterious.

In addition to your own prayers, I hope you will join me and other interfaith leaders for a vigil this Sunday evening, March 6, at 7:00 pm at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. Our prayers and our witness matter, and as followers of Jesus, we are called to constantly cultivate peace in our hearts, in our households, and in our communities, so that together, we can cultivate the peace and justice of God in a world that cries out for it. 

O God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. – Book of Common Prayer, p. 815

Grace and Peace,

The Right Reverend Craig Loya
X Bishop
Episcopal Church in Minnesota