Ultimately, we have just one moral duty: to reclaim large areas of peace in ourselves, more and more peace, and to reflect it towards others. And the more peace there is in us, the more peace there will also be in our troubled world.

—  Etty Hillesum

O God, who dwells beyond all our names for you,
we pray for the will to be at peace with one another.

We remember this day those who find themselves thrust into war;
We pray for light in the darkness, and hope amid despair.
We pray for peace in ourselves;
help us to breathe in peace, help us to breathe out love;
help us know and accept ourselves as your beloved.
We pray for peace in our families;
help us to speak the truth to one another in love;
help us to respect and value one another.

Let there be peace in our communities;
help us to create a peace born of justice and equity;
help us to honour and serve the common good.

Let there be peace in our nation;
sustain our hope; grant us wisdom;
empower us with courage.

Let there be peace in our world.
Help us to love the earth as our mother;
help us to see other nations as our neighbours;
help us to wage peace.

(Rev Kay Sylvester, Rector, St. Paul’s, Tustin – Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles)

This week was the fourth anniversary of the war in Ukraine.

In February 2022, when Ukraine was invaded by Russia, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York wrote a prayer for the country and its people:

A Prayer for Ukraine God of peace and justice,
we pray for the people of Ukraine today.
We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons.
We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow,
that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them.
We pray for those with power over war or peace,
for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions.
Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear,
that you would hold and protect them.
We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

Light a candle, as a visible sign of the light of Christ, who is the light of the world.

Take a deep breath. Feel the breath of God that has given you life.

Centre yourself and pray…

Lord, we pray for the power to be gentle; the strength to be forgiving; the patience to be understanding; and the endurance to accept the consequences of holding to what we believe to be right. 
May we put our trust in the power of good to overcome evil and the power of love to overcome hatred. 
We pray for the vision to see and the faith to believe in a world emancipated from violence, a new world where fear shall no longer lead men to commit injustice, nor selfishness make them bring suffering to others. 
Help us to devote our whole life and thought and energy to the task of making peace, praying always for the inspiration and the power to fulfill the destiny for which we and all men were created.

A prayer from the Catholic Weekly 1978

Once a year I choose the Peace Prayer of St Francis for our weekly Prayer for Peace. Those on the internet may like to click on this link to listen to a rendition of the prayer. I think that I have suggested this same video before as well! https://youtu.be/vs644Vp_mLM?si=24co5GYXrvM2nD1O

PEACE PRAYER OF SAINT FRANCIS

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

We are moulded, each one of us,
in the image of God,
and within our souls there is a fingerprint
none can erase.
We pray for those who have no regard
for anyone but self,
who put no value on human life.
For nations and individuals who abuse and kill.
We are not called to be judge or jury,
but we are called to be agents of change,
and if the butterfly that flaps its wings
should be our attitude to others
then so be it, Lord,
and may the hurricane this generates
somewhere within the world
reach into the hearts and souls of those
for whom we pray, and reveal to them
how precious are those
for whom they have no love,
and how precious are they
who now bring tears to the eyes of God.

– John Birch

Dear Lord, amid wars and turmoil, we seek Your peace that surpasses all understanding. Calm the hearts of those who fight and heal the wounds of those who suffer. Bring reconciliation where there is anger and understanding where there is hate. May Your Spirit guide leaders and warriors alike to choose the path of peace and justice. Help us to be instruments of Your peace in a broken world.

Prayerlift

Prayer for Peace 25/01/2026

“Let us pray.

We pray for all people who are outside the security of peace and stability. Battle zones are so numerous, and those suffering are often innocent bystanders in the conflicts that rage around them. They are often left without shelter, water, health, and educational opportunity. They are at the mercy of those warring around them. We pray that cease-fires may become a reality – that leaders will seek genuine peace rather than vengeance or reprisal. Amen”

This prayer was prepared by Dernancourt Uniting Church as part of Uniting in Prayer 2024 and became part of the Prayer for Others prayed in our church last Sunday. 

Kapayapaan

Peace

Paz

Kalinaw

Salam

Shalom

Salaamata

Friede

Paix

Santi

Pace

Kedamaian

God, who is known by many names,

Draw us to Your heart.

To the deepest sighs of grieving souls,

so that we may stand and mourn with them for the loss of their kin,

taken by hunger and disease;

taken by bullets and bombs, accused as enemies of the state.

Bring us to your heart,

to the songs of people’s melodies.

They sing lullabies and hymns that long for freedom.

Their voices reach out to the highest heaven, like a prayer.

Lead us to their music.

So that we can sing with them, and pray with them,

until the song of FREEDOM unites us all.

Bring us to your heart.

To the dance of the people’s rhythm to struggle for life

that leads their movement towards justice and vision of peace

So that when we breathe in the wind of Shalom

we will know that victory is in us.

Lead us to Your kind heart.

To the poems of people’s tears that tell of their humanity.

Bring us to their stories of courage and hope,

Woven together so we may collectively find Your peace that surpasses understanding and action.

We long for peace.

A Peace that sets us free

from oppression and exploitation.

A peace that is JUST and enduring.

A peace that restores and celebrates our God-given humanity.

Amen. Act for Peace

and also remembering the events at Bondi

In the Wake of Violence and Hate

God,

In the wake of violence and hate,

May compassion flow;

May love be preached in word and action;

May hate be rejected;

May we temper our outrage with the Fruit of your presence as Spirit;

May we remember your call love neighbour and enemy;

May we reject evil, whilst at the same time having the wisdom to not add to it;

May we know you to be at work for good, even in the midst of heartache and suffering.

Centre us in your presence,

That we might be sacred ground for hope, peace, love and healing,

Even amidst trouble and strife.

As Christ, speak as Word we might know what to do and say,

And thereby do justly,

Love with mercy and kindness,

And walk humbly with you,

Immanuel – God with us.

In the wake of violence and hate we pray.

Amen.

– Poem by Rev John Humphries

How do we pray for peace from half a world away?

How can words salve and soothe real wounds,

Assuage real fears, Wipe tears from real eyes?

God of endless compassion, transform our prayers

From words into bridges, that span the distances

Between us, uniting our hearts in yours.

Every time we turn our keys in a lock,

May we remember all who are losing their homes.

Every time we step into our cars,

May we remember all who are having to flee.

Every time we embrace our children,

May we remember all who are trying to shield theirs from war.

May our besieged sisters and brothers

Be drawn into the arms of the suffering Christ,

And may our cry be heard as one voice,

Ringing out from every corner of the earth:

God of endless mercy, grant us peace.

Amen.  (Cameron Bellm)