The human spirit has enormous resilience.
But it is pushed to the limit by grief following the tragedy we have witnessed:
sudden and unexpected death,
the loss of so many lives.
These vicious attacks defy our understanding.
It hurts.
We grieve.
We do not understand, nor do we accept the logic of terrorists who go about a path of willful destruction.
It is an assault on the very soul of our nation, and for some, it is a personal assault as well.
We begin to go through the torturous journey of weeks and months until somehow the scattered pieces of our souls slowly move forward from the painful shadows.
And so we are here with mixed emotions:
deep sadness
numbness
anger
grief
helplessness
fear.
We come seeking
answers
comfort
understanding
hope
peace.
"Our spirit's healing temple is someone else's available and understanding heart,"
says Howard Thurman.
And so we pray that there will be those who offer
a listening ear, a healing touch.
We pray that there will be those who will not shrink from our untidy suffering,
for it is through the support of these souls that we might find a balm, a salve, and begin to
heal our pain.
We pray for strength, for
a few more morsels of faith
a few more nuggets of time when we can empty our minds of it all
and little spaces in our days and nights when we can touch another soul, and be held in someone else's embrace.
Help us to find the hope that lies
beneath what our eyes can see and our ears can hear.
Help us to hold fast to the belief
that there is still goodness in this world.
Help us to respond out of love rather than out of fear.
Help us to trust again, knowing that
"the arc of the moral universe is long" and that it does indeed "bend toward justice."
Mend once again our brokenness, and guide us toward the path of peace.
Blessed be. Namaste. A' Salaam Alakim. Ashe, Shalom, and Amen.