February 20: World Day of Social Justice
Prayer
The World Day of Social Justice
Opening Song -
Introduction to Prayer
We gather today with our brothers and sisters in the nations of our world to observe this first World Day of Social Justice unanimously adopted by the 192 member nations of the United Nations General Assembly during their November 2007 general session. This action was a widening of the tent of the United Nations as an international organization and a widening of the tents of the member nations. We are invited to join them by widening our tents.
The members recognized that social development aims at social
justice, solidarity, harmony and equality within and among countries; social
justice, equality and equity constitute the fundamental values of all societies. Economic growth should promote equity and social
justice and that “a society for all” must be based on social justice and
respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The members also noted that the
observance of this day should contribute to further consolidation of the
efforts of the international community in eradication of poverty, promotion of
full employment and decent work, gender equity and access to social well-being
and justice for all.
This prayer uses the principles of
Catholic Social Teaching which remind us of the essentials we need to live to
make social justice a reality in our world. In a spirit
of solidarity and communion with all of creation and all our brothers and
sisters, we recall the words of Micah and pray that our observance of this day
may lead to a deeper living of and fulfilment of God’s invitation to us
This
is what I want from you
To
do justice,
To love compassionately and
To
walk humbly with your God Micah 6:8
A PSALM TO WIDEN OUR TENTS
Choir 1 Our
world is too small.
Our lives are too small. Our vision
is too restricted.
Choir 2 May
the people of various countries, various cultures,
tribes
and families find room in our world and our
lives.
All Help us to widen our tents, Shaddai, so that all are welcome among us.
Choir 1 Our attitudes are too parochial, our assumptions too simplistic, our behaviour too predictable.
Choir 2 May
special people, may the differently-abled, may minorities of any kind -
of
race, class, or gender – find room in our world and our hearts,
All Help
us to widen our tents, Shaddai, so that all are welcome among us.
Choir
1 Our boundaries are too limited, our preferences too conditioned,
our
habits too ingrained.
Choir
2 May the aging and the very young, may subcultural groups of every kind,
may
special interests groups find room in our world and our prayer.
All Help
us to widen our tents, Shaddai, so that all are welcome
among us.
Choir
1 Our
God is too small, Our rites too rigid,
Our
ways are too exclusive.
Choir
2 May
people of various religions and rites, whose name for God and claim to God are different
from our own, find room
in our world and our love.
All Help
us to widen our tents, Shaddai, so that all are welcome among us.
God
of all cultures, God of all people,
help us not to label anyone inferior or second-class.
Help us overcome our attitudes of superiority and
oppression.
May we broaden our vision and widen our tents
so that plurality and diversity determine who we are:
people called and committed to a world united
injustice
and peace, now and forever. Amen.
Adapted by jfb/jos3.viii.94 from M.T. Winter. WomanWisdom Crossword
Publications. 1991: p. 105.
Life and Dignity of the Human Person
“Every person, created in the image and likeness of
God and therefore radically oriented towards the Creator is constantly in
relationship with those possessed of the same dignity. To promote the good of the individual
is thus to serve the common good, which is that point where rights and duties
converge and reinforce one another.” Pope John Paul II, 1999 World Day for
Peace Message, no.2
Rights and Responsibilities of the Human Person
“Every fundamental human right draws its
indestructible moral force form the natural law, which in granting it imposes a
corresponding obligation. Those,
therefore, who claim their own rights, yet altogether forget to neglect to
carry out their respective duties, are people who build with one hand and
destroy with the other.” Pope John XXIII, Peace on Earth (Pacem
in Terris, 1963) no. 30
Silent
Reflection
Intercessions expressed freely
Psalm 141*
I call to You, O Beloved One,
suffuse me with your Love.
Give ear to my prayer when I call to you.
May my supplication be heard as I surrender before
You,
as I abandon myself into your heart.
Lead me to words of wisdom and truth,
seeds to be planted in my heart-soil.
Guide me to times of solitude and silence that nurture
new growth,
so the Word may ripen into abundant fruit.
Cultivate in me a heart great with compassion and
mercy,
that radiates out to all your creation.
May your Light so shine in me
that others are attracted to your peace and harmony.
In the company of your friends,
may I, too, walk the pilgrim road
to wholeness and holiness.
Call to Family, Community and Participation
“The life of the community,
both domestically and internationally, clearly demonstrates that respect for
rights, and the guarantees that follow from them, are measures of the common
good that serve to evaluate the relationship
between justice and injustice, development and poverty,
security and conflict. The
promotion of human rights remains the most effective strategy for eliminating
inequalities between countries and social groups, and for increasing security.” Pope Benedict XVI
address to the United Nations, 18 April 2008
Option for and with the Poor and Vulnerable
“It is the strict duty of justice and truth not to allow fundamental human needs to remain unsatisfied and not to allow those burdened by such needs to perish. It is also necessary to help these needy people to acquire expertise, to enter the circle of exchange, and to develop their skills in order to make the best use of their capacities and resources.” Pope John Paul II, On the Hundredth Anniversary of Rerum Novarum (Centesimus Annus 1991) no. 34
Proverbs 21: 10 – 15
Silent
Reflection
Song response
Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
“It is clear that recognition of the proper position
of labour and the worker in the production process demands various adaptations
in the sphere of the right to ownership of the means of production.”
Pope Joan Paul II, On Human Work (Laborem Exercens 1981) no. 14
Care for God’s Creation/Stewardship
“…international action to preserve the environment and
to protect various forms of life on earth must not only guarantee a rational
use of technology and science, but must also rediscover the authentic image of
creation.” Pope
Benedict XVI address to the United Nations, 18 April 2008
Silent
Reflection
Intercessions expressed freely
Psalm 85* or a song
Let me hear what you have to say,
for you will speak peace to your people,
to those who are near you and who turn to you in their
hearts.
Your salvation is near for those who fear you,
that glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have embraced;
Justice and peace will kiss.
Truth shall spring out of the earth,
and justice will look down from heaven.
You will give what is good, our land will yield its
increase.
Justice shall go before you and make a path for your
steps.
Global Solidarity
“Positive signs in the contemporary world are the growing
awareness of the solidarity of the poor among themselves, their effort to
support one another, and their public demonstrations on the social scene which,
without recourse to violence, present their own needs and right in the face of
the inefficiency or corruption of the public authorities.” Pope John Paul II, On
Social Concern (Sollicitudo Rei Socialis) no. 39
Mt 6:19 – 21
Silent
Reflection
Intercessions expressed freely
Promotion of Peace
“It is too easy to throw back on others responsibility
for injustices, if at the same time one does not realize how each one shares in
it personally, and how personal conversion is needed first. …For beneath an
outward appearance of indifference in the heart of every man (and woman) is a
will to live in brotherhood (and sisterhood) and a thirst for justice and
peace, which is to be expanded.” Pope Paul VI, On the Occasion of the
Eightieth Anniversary of the Encyclical Rerum Novarum (Octogesima Adveniens 1971) no. 48
Isaiah 2:3 - 5
Silent
Reflection
Psalm 122* or a song
Pray for the peace of the world!
May all nations prosper as one.
May peace reign among all peoples,
and integrity dwell within every heart.
Then will friends and neighbours and former enemies as
well,
cry out “peace be within you.”
For the good of the universe and in gratitude to the
Beloved
let us serve the Holy One of all nations with glad
hearts.
* All Psalms in English from Psalms for Praying by Nan C. Merrill. NY: The Continuum Publishing House, 2000.
Closing
Prayer - Lord's
Prayer for Justice
Our
Father . . .who always stands with the weak, the powerless,
the poor, the abandoned, the sick, the aged, the very young,
the unborn, and those who, by victim of circumstance, bear
the heat of the day.
Who art in heaven .
. . where everything will be reversed, where the first will be last and the
last will be first, but where all will be
well and every manner of being will be well.
Hallowed be thy name .
. . may we always acknowledge your holiness,
respecting that your ways are not our ways, your standards are not our
standards. May the reverence we give your name pull us out
of the selfishness that prevents us from seeing the
pain of our neighbor.
Your
kingdom come . . . help us to create a world where,
beyond our own needs and hurts, we will do justice, love tenderly,
and walk humbly with you and each other.
Your will be done .
. . open our freedom to let you in so that the
complete mutuality that characterizes your life might flow
through our veins and thus the life that we help generate may
radiate your equal love for all and your special love for the poor.
On earth as in heaven .
. . may the work of our hands, the temples and structures we build in this
world, reflect the temple and the structure of your glory so that the joy,
graciousness, tenderness, and justice of heaven will
show forth within all of our structures on earth.
Give . . . life and
love to us and help us to see always everything as gift. Help
us to know that nothing comes to us by right and that we must
give because we have been given to. Help us realize that we must give to the
poor, not because they need it, but because our own
health depends upon our giving to them.
Us . . . the truly
plural us. Give not just to our own but to everyone, including those who are
very different than the narrow us. Give your gifts to
all of us equally.
This day . . . not tomorrow. Do
not let us push things ort into some indefinite future so that
we can continue to live justified lives in the face of injustice because
we can make good excuses for our
inactivity.
Our daily bread ... so that each person in the world may have enough food,
enough clean water, enough clean air, adequate health care, and sufficient
access to education so as to have the sustenance for a healthy life. Teach us
to give from our sustenance and not just
from our surplus.
And forgive us our trespasses .
. . forgive us our blindness toward our neighbor,
our self-preoccupation, our racism, our sexism, and our incurable propensity to
worry only about ourselves and our own. Forgive us our
capacity to watch the evening news and do nothing
about it.
As we forgive those who trespass against us .
. . help us to forgive those who victimize us.
Help us to mellow out in spirit, to not grow bitter with age, to forgive the imperfect
parents and systems
that wounded, cursed, and ignored us.
And do not put us to the test ... do not judge us only by whether we have fed the hungry,
given clothing to the naked, visited the sick, or
tried to mend the systems that victimized the poor.
Spare us this test for none of us can stand before your gospel
scrutiny. Give us, instead, more days to mend»our ways, our
selfishness, and our systems.
But deliver us from evil .
. . that is, from the blindness that lets us continue to
participate in anonymous systems within which we need not see
who gets less as we get more. Amen.
The
Holy Longing Ronald Rolheiser OMI
Closing
Song
Some
Questions for Reflection / Discussion