RESPONSIVE READING
Gracious God, we thank you for making one human family of all the peoples of the earth and for creating all the wonderful diversity of cultures.
Enrich our lives by ever-widening circles of fellowship and show us your presence in those who differ most from us.

Forgive those of us who have been silent and apathetic in the face of racial intolerance and bigotry, both overt and subtle, public and private.
And take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts.

Break down the walls which separate us.
And help us to find that unity which is the fruit of righteousness and which will enable us to become your beloved community.

Empower us to speak boldly for justice and truth and help us to deal with one another without hatred or bitterness, working together with mutual forbearance and respect.
And work through our struggles and confusion to accomplish your purposes.
Amen.

(adapted from “Sabbath of Support in Opposition to Racism,”www.religioustolerance.org)

PRAYER OF CONFESSION
For the racism which denies dignity to those who are different, Lord, forgive us:
Lord, have mercy.
For the racism which recognizes prejudice in others and never in ourselves, Christ, forgive us:
Christ, have mercy.
For the racism which will not recognize the work of your Spirit in other cultures, Lord, forgive us:
Lord, have mercy.

TO THE CREATOR OF ALL PEOPLES
To the Creator of all peoples, who loves each of us for our uniqueness, we offer our prayers of petition:
For an end to discrimination in all its forms, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That each person may be respected and valued as a child of God, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That the Church may be a witness and a universal sign of unity among all peoples, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That each of us may acknowledge our part in mistakes and sins of the past pertaining to discrimination and racism, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
For a spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation among peoples who share a history of mutual mistrust, hatred, or aggression, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That the victims of racial prejudice may forgive those who persecute them, and that their persecutors may have a change of heart, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That the Church will continue to strive to make every element of human life correspond to the true dignity of the human person, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
For those who have struggled for civil rights, economic justice and the elimination of discrimination based on race, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
For the conversion of the hearts and minds of those who allow another to influence their relationships and limit their openness, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That we may work to influence the attitudes of others by expressly rejecting racial stereotypes, slurs, and be affirming of the cultural contributions of every racial group in our world, we pray,
Lord of all, hear our prayer.
That we may make a personal commitment to abolish social structures which inhibit economic, educational and social advancement of the poor, we pray,
Lord of all nations, hear our prayer.
That we may work for decent working conditions, adequate income, housing, education and health care for all people, we pray,
Lord of all nations, hear our prayer.
Amen.

(adapted from the Augustinians of the Midwest,www.midwestaugustinians.org/justpaxracepray.html)

CREATOR OF ALL PEOPLE
Almighty God, source of our life, we acknowledge you as Creator of all people of every race, language and way of life.
Help us to see each other as you see us: your sons and daughters loved into being and sustained by your parental care.
Keep watch over our hearts so that the evil of racism will find no home with us.
Direct our spirits to work for justice and peace so that all barriers to your grace which oppress our brothers and sisters will be removed. In Jesus' name we pray,
Amen.

(from the Augustinians of the Midwest,www.midwestaugustinians.org/justpaxracepray.html)

LENTEN PRAYER
O God of unconditional love,
you who show no partiality in respect to persons or nations,
we have heard your good news of great joy for all the people,
We hear that good news, and in hearing, believe.
We know that your sanctuary is a house of worship for all people,
with no regard for the color of our skin.
As we worship you, knit us into a people,
a seamless garment of many colors.
May we celebrate our unity, made whole in our diversity.
Forgive us for our inability to let our “old selves” die to the world.
We acknowledge that we participate in structures that are inherently racist,
and yet we do nothing to remedy it.
Show us when we fail when we judge others according to the color of their flesh.
Amen.

(adapted from the United Church of Christ’s “Prayers for Racial Justice Sunday,”www.ucc.org/worship/ways)