God of Eve, our first mother; God of Sarah and Hagar,
God of Ruth and Naomi, God of Mary the Magdalene;
and of Mary, the mother of our Lord;
God of Hildegard of Bingen and Catherine of Sienna;
God of Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks:
We call your blessing down upon all the women of this congregation.
Help them to be good daughters and sisters, good friends and spouses,
good mothers and grandmothers, good women of faith.
Stir up in them the power of your Spirit.
Kindle in them the fire of your love.
Call forth in them the strength to serve you
and the courage to speak on your behalf.
Through word and sacrament in this community of faith,
renew in them the blessed assurance of salvation
and the promise of eternal glory in your presence.
We pray most especially for those who need you most this day—
women in this church and beyond our walls—
the tired and overworked, the unemployed or the underemployed,
women who must raise children alone,
or grandmothers who are charged with the care of grandchildren;
women who are abused or who struggle with substance abuse;
women from whom the government would wrest control of their bodies;
the women of Ukraine, Syria, Tigray, and other places where war rages;
and especially those who, having served you in life,
are now awaiting you at death’s door.
women in this church and beyond our walls—
the tired and overworked, the unemployed or the underemployed,
women who must raise children alone,
or grandmothers who are charged with the care of grandchildren;
women who are abused or who struggle with substance abuse;
women from whom the government would wrest control of their bodies;
the women of Ukraine, Syria, Tigray, and other places where war rages;
and especially those who, having served you in life,
are now awaiting you at death’s door.
Hear our prayers for these,
and for those that we now name before you in the silence of our hearts…
[A silence is kept.]
All this we bring to you in the Name of Jesus Christ,
your Son and our Sovereign,
who with you and the Holy Spirit,
lives and reigns in glory everlasting. Amen.
and for those that we now name before you in the silence of our hearts…
[A silence is kept.]
All this we bring to you in the Name of Jesus Christ,
your Son and our Sovereign,
who with you and the Holy Spirit,
lives and reigns in glory everlasting. Amen.
based on a prayer found in This Far by Faith, ELCA ©1999
