Paths of Justice: Celtic Prayers for a World of Equity, Unity, and Healing

Energize us with Your compassion, Giver of Life,

to help the dispossessed, to listen to those without voices,

and to reach out in friendship to all.

Empower us with Your love; encourage us with Your Spirit;

make us strong to bring Your justice

to individuals, communities, nations, and the entire globe.

Our society often assumes that "justice" has to do with punishment. We think it means we make criminals pay for their crimes. The biblical meaning of the word "justice," however, means "to make right." This concept of justice has to do with healthy relationships based on equity and kindness; it refers to a society based on life-giving relationships between God, human beings, and the natural world. This is the world Ray Simpson seeks to build, and he offers these prayers as openings into the Divine power that constantly seeks to heal and restore.

Remind us, God of Love,

that when we eagerly desire the best for one another,

the differences between us no longer seem as important.

Knowing that we share the same origin, the same essence,

and the same journey together away from fragmentation,

may we work with You toward the completion of all things

and all people, so that in Christ,

we might be reunited

in love.