In response to the escalation of violence involving Israel, Iran and the United States, Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz offers this litany that reminds us of God’s call to peace.
Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz is Mennonite Church USA’s denominational minister for Peace and Justice. For more than 25 years, she served as the coordinator ofMennonite Central Committee’s Restorative Justice program. She also co-authored “The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools” and “What Will Happen to Me?” Lorraine graduated from Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Virginia, with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work, and earned a master’s in Social Work from Marywood University, Scranton, Pennsylvania. She and her husband attend Blossom Hill Mennonite Church, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
________________________________________
God of love, who calls us to be peacemakers in a world of conflict,
we come to you with heavy hearts as tensions continue to rise between nations.
Make us instruments of your peace.
We ask that you guide our leaders to seek wisdom, restraints and diplomacy as we move forward.
Make us instruments of your peace.
For those who are living in fear of escalating violence, we pray for safety and the right to live in a world
Where there is no war.
Make us instruments of your peace.
For those calling for peace, for justice, for dialogue, give each one courage and strength to speak truth to power.
Make us instruments of your peace.
May our church rise as a witness to peace and justice, rejecting war and proclaiming God’s love for all.
Make us instruments of your peace.
RESOURCES
Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective, Article 22: Peace, Justice and Nonresistance. “We believe that peace is the will of God. God created the world in peace, and God’s peace is most fully revealed in Jesus Christ, who is our peace and the peace of the whole world. Led by the Holy Spirit, we follow Christ in the way of peace, doing justice, bringing reconciliation, and practicing nonresistance even in the face of violence and warfare.” – Read more here.
Learn, Pray, Join: Cost of War webinar (recording) View it here.
Read the MC USA resolution on Faithful Witness Amid Endless War.
We need renewed understanding of how to live out the “new creation” that is in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17).
Adult Sunday School Curriculum “Returning Veterans. Returning Hope: Seeking Peace Together” from Mennonite Mission Network.
Donate to MC USA’s Peace Church Tax Fund, which provides funding for educational programs that address militarism and promote living out ways of peace, including an annual grant to support Mennonite youth actively engaged in resisting war and promoting peace in their congregation and community.
Peaceful Options for Training & Careers (POTC) is a U.S.-based networking project that will match you with an advisor who can help you find viable alternatives to military service.
The views and opinions expressed in this blog belong to the author and are not intended to represent the views of the MC USA Executive Board or staff.