NIGHT PRAYER: Thursday 4/9

Evil... It's not an exaggeration to say we find ourselves confronted with evil at almost every turn.  And sin...  Everywhere I look, I find evidence of the seven deadly sins - pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, indifference - all staining the fabric of our shared life on this planet.  But it's not fashionable, not socially acceptable, to name the evil and sin that's all around us. Perhaps we've normalized these realities to the degree that we no longer recognize them for what they are...

 

Drawing on Pope John Paul II’s letter, The Splendor of Truth in which he relied on the Vatican II document, Joy and Hope,  the American bishops offered these examples of intrinsic evil:

“Whatever is opposed to life itself,
    such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion,
        euthanasia or willful self-destruction;
- whatever violates the integrity of the human person,
    such as mutilation, torments inflicted on body or mind,
        attempts to coerce the will itself;
- whatever insults human dignity,
    such as subhuman living conditions,
        arbitrary imprisonment,
            deportation, slavery, prostitution,
                the selling of women and children;
- as well as disgraceful working conditions
    where men and women are treated
        as mere tools for profit
            rather than as free and responsible persons;
- all these things and others of their like
    are infamies indeed.
They poison human society…
    they are a supreme dishonor to the Creator. "

Categorizing these evils as intrinsic means that these are deeds so evil that no circumstance can make them good.  And the list above is not exhaustive. 

 

I recognize the power of the evil one and the reality of sin  in the world - and in my own life as well.  I know my own personal struggle to be a more faithful child of God, a sibling of Jesus, anointed by the Spirit - in the face of evil that tempts me to trust and follow my own mind and will rather than render myself vulnerable to divine wisdom and grace.

 

In that light, then, I offer this Night Prayer... 

 

Deliver us, Lord, from every evil:

 from its cunning, conniving wiles and schemes

 at work in the world, among and within us,

 crafty and sly, subtle and shrewd...

 

Deliver us, Lord, from evil's inducement

 to lay down our words and take up arms,

 to plunder and pillage,

 to kill and destroy...

 

Deliver us, Lord, from any evil

 that feeds our hearts

 with guile and bitterness, 

 spite and suspicion,

 rage and resentment…

 

Deliver us, Lord, from the bigoted evil

 that tempts us to hate and spurn our neighbor,

 to reject, despise and condemn the other,

   simply for being - other -

      for not being just like us...

 

Deliver us, Lord, from the lying evil

 that bends and twists, distorts and denies 

 the truth of the simple wisdom 

 that saves and sets us free…

 

Deliver us, Lord, from evil that works

 to excuse and condone, indulge and concede

 the death of innocent, blameless souls

 who’ve done no harm,

 who've committed no wrong…

 

Deliver us from, Lord, from the scurrilous evil

 that gossips and bad-mouths 

 smears and stains, destroys and defiles

 the virtue and honor 

 of someone’s good reputation...

 

Deliver us, Lord, from the grotesque evil

 of making a profit off drugs and porn,

   and weapons that harm and maim and kill;

 of making a living through grifting and graft

   and fraud and scams,

   extortion and insider trading... 

 

Deliver us, Lord, from evil's grip

  shackling those who are most in need 

  of the freedom and rights 

  belonging to all

  and given you, our Creator... 

 

Deliver us, Lord, from the devious evil

 that lurks in the hearts, 

 in the plans and the deeds,

 in the machinations 

 of those who hate and despise us...

 

Deliver us, Lord, from every evil

 haunting and taunting, teasing and tempting

 our personal pride, our selfish desires,

 our willful and obstinate minds…

 

Deliver us, Lord, from the evil of those

  who blaspheme your name

 and all that is holy, all that is just,

  all that is good and pure…

 

Deliver us into your mercy, O Lord:

 into your grace, into your peace,

 into your pure and abiding love…

 

Lead us not into temptation

  but deliver us, Lord, we pray,

from the prowling presence of evil

  roaming our world

   and seeking the ruin of souls...

 

Deliver us, Lord:

 by the strength of your arm,

 the gifts of your Holy Spirit,

 the loving protection of angels and saints

 and the prayers of Mary our Mother,

  the Queen and the Gate of heaven...

 

Protect us, Lord, while we're awake

    and watch over us while we sleep

that awake, we might keep watch with you

    and asleep, rest in your peace...

Amen. 

 

We Look to You by Joel Sczebel, Matt Searles

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