Weekly Peace Prayer
for April 29, 2025
prepared by
Sister Carmel Little, CSJP
Constitutions:
Peace is God’s gift to us, given in Christ,
a gift we experience and enjoy now,
though not in its completeness.
We believe that peace points beyond itself in hope
to the fullness of time. #1
Christ is our peace,
the source of our power.
United with him
we engage in the struggle
against the reality of evil
and continue the work
of establishing God’s reign
of justice and peace. #2
Reading: Luke 24: 35 -42
Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.
While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.[ While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.
Prayer:
Gracious God we pray for peace on earth.
For peace that is life-giving:
For peace that is love-bearing:
For peace that is true freedom:
For peace that is purposeful:
For peace that is prevailing.
Pamela Wilding, Kenya
Prayers Encircling the World
Quiet Reflection
Reading: Jesus Is a Peacemaker
Jesus, the Blessed Child of the Father is a peacemaker. His peace doesn’t mean only absence of war. It is not simply harmony or equilibrium. His peace is the fullness of well-being, gratuitously given by God. Jesus says, “Peace I leave to you, my own peace I give you, a peace which the world cannot give, this is my gift to you.” (John 14:27)
Peace is Shalom---well-being of mind, heart, and body, individually and communally. It can exist in the midst of a war-torn world, even in the midst of unresolved problems and increasing human conflicts. Jesus made that peace by giving his life for his brothers and sisters. This is no easy peace, but it is everlasting and it comes from God. Are we willing to give our lives in the service of peace?
Henri J. M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey
Prayer:
Gracious God, you have called Pope Francis to yourself. We thank you for the gift of his papacy In his ministry he served you with compassion, mercy and love which he showed to all people. He welcomed all to your table in friendship and communion. He tirelessly showed the Church your constant mercy toward sinners. Greet him now with your compassion and let him rest eternally with you in your peace. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Quiet Reflection
Prayer for Peace by Pope Francis
Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflicts by our own powers and by the force of our arms. How many moments of hostility and darkness have we experienced; how much blood has been shed; how many lives have been shattered; how many hopes have been buried… But our efforts have been in vain.
Now, Lord, come to our aid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: "Never again war!; "With war everything is lost". Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarreling into forgiveness.
Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words "division", "hatred" and "war" be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be "brother", and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam! Amen.
Blessing:
May God embrace Pope Francis with the gentleness, compassion and mercy,
that he showed to all people. May the God of peace open our hearts and minds
to the needs of other in Christ Jesus.
