Lord, have mercy: A prayer for shalom
A binational prayer for and by the members of Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada during the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, which conclude on Election Day, Nov. 3.
God of Shalom,
We come to you as a binational community of Christians who are troubled by the increasing violence in our world. We are praying with clarity and a newfound intensity for lasting peace rooted in justice.
We are troubled by wars and threats of wars in Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, and with threats leveled also by the United States against Canada and Greenland. This is a foreboding cloud over us all.
We pray,
Lord, have mercy.
We are troubled by rising costs of gasoline, food and U.S.-traded goods that are increasingly tariffed, making life unnecessarily difficult for people around the world.
We pray,
Lord, have mercy.
We are troubled by news of changing immigration laws and deportations that create dangerous situations for undocumented refugees and immigrants, especially as we remember that Jesus himself was a refugee.
We pray,
Lord, have mercy.
We are troubled by the hate and discrimination that is directed at the most vulnerable among us.
We pray,
Lord, have mercy.
We are troubled by how these changes in our world affect those who are least protected and already reeling from the withdrawal of so much global aid. We fear that they are being pushed past their breaking point — especially as the U.S. midterm elections approach.
We pray,
Lord, have mercy.
[Pause]
In the weeks and months to come:
Give us strength to keep praying, even when mercy feels far away.
With steadfast hope that your kin-dom will come on earth as it is in heaven, we pray:
- that the wars will come to an end and that the weapons will fall silent so that people may trust each other again and sleep without fear.
- that our leaders on both sides of the border will be good and wise, and that our families and churches will heal from the polarization that separates us.
- that those who are targets of hate will be protected from harm and comforted by God’s love during this season.
- that our churches will increasingly become places of refuge for those who suffer, homes open to the stranger, and places of reconciliation for those whom politics, fear, prejudice or wounds have divided.
We dream, O God:
- of a world where people trust one another and work toward the safety and flourishing of their neighbors without fear of being left behind.
- of a world where people feel celebrated and loved in the fullness of who they are, even when identities are changing, uncertain or challenging of social norms.
- of a world where all people are free to enter into healthy, meaningful, reciprocal relationships with land and water, and to learn how all creation is an expression of God’s love.
- of a world where even through the cracks of hardship and economic distress, light and compassion break through to heal those who are most vulnerable.
We are not simply asking you, O God, to bring peace. We are asking your Spirit to move in and through us, so that, together, we build a world founded on shalom:
- Teach us to recognize our neighbor in the person who does not speak our language, who does not carry our passport, who does not come from our people and who does not look like us.
- Give us courage to use our collective power to change systems and structures of violence.
- Empower us to work for justice in the streets and in our congregations.
- Grant us hope and vision to sustain this witness of peace in a volatile world.
We pray in the name of Jesus, the Christ —
the One we follow,
the One we imitate.
Amen.
Many thanks to the collaborators from Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada who wrote this prayer: Marty Lehman and Mykayla Turner, who compiled and edited the prayer, and contributors James Barber, Thomas Beech, Catherine Bergs Mohr, Eliot Chandler Burns, Joanna Lawrence Shenk, Suella Lehman Gerber, Merveille Mwankin, Bimal Thambyah, Jerrell Williams and Ykhann Bamis.
