Praying the News | Blog | Spirituality & Practice

A Prayer for Victims and Families after Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria

Posted by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat on February 10, 2023

On 6 February 2023, an earthquake hit southern and central Turkey, and northern and western Syria with a magnitude of at least 7.8. It was followed by more than 1,000 aftershocks, including an unusually powerful 7.7 nine hours after the mainshock. It was Turkey’s deadliest earthquake in 80 years.

Reuters reports that at least 23,800 deaths, 83,000 people with non-fatal injuries, nearly 400,000 people displaced, 7,500 buildings destroyed, and at least 24 million people affected.

(Photo Credit: The wreckage of a collapsed building, Diyarbakır, Turkey. Photo by Mahmut Bozarslan - VOA)

And so we pray this news . . .

A Tiny Prayer for those who are mad as Hell

Posted by Micah Bucey on November 23, 2022

On November 19, 2022, Kelly Loving, Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump, Ashley Paugh, and Raymond Green Vance were killed and 25 others injured in a mass shooting by 22-year-old Anderson Aldrich at LGBTQ+ club, Club Q, in Colorado Springs.

And so we pray this news . . .

Tiny Prayer for Those Suffering from Gun Violence

Posted by Micah Bucey on May 26, 2022

On May 24, 2022, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, United States, killing nineteen students and two teachers, and wounding seventeen people. Just a week prior, on May 14, 10 people were killed and three were injured in a racially motivated attack at a Tops Friendly Market in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo.

And so we pray this news . . .

A Tiny Prayer for Those Who Need to be Celebrated

Posted by Micah Bucey on March 21, 2022

Spirituality & Practice celebrated its 16th Birthday on March 21, 2022. The team gathered on Zoom with people from our community for an hour of sharing about the work we do and why we are happy doing it. Micah Bucey, one of S&P's film reviewers and the author of The Book of Tiny Prayer, launched our time together with a tiny prayer for those who need to be celebrated.

And so we pray this news . . .

A Tiny Prayer for Ukraine

Posted by Micah Bucey on February 24, 2022

In a pre-dawn televised address on February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine as Russian forces invaded the country from Russia and Belarus in the east and north and by landing on the southern coasts from the Black Sea and Azov Sea. Within hours, Ukraine's military sites had been bombed and Russian troops had taken over the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and Hostomel airport near the capital of Kyiv. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Ukrainians to defend their country while leaders in Europe and the United States considered their options to respond.

And so we pray this news . . .

A Tiny Prayer for Sidney Poitier

Posted by Micah Bucey on January 7, 2022

Sidney Poitier died at his home in Los Angeles, California, on January 6, 2022, at the age of 94. The Bahamian-American actor, film director, and ambassador was the first Black person and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for Lilies of the Field. He was granted a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II in 1974. In 1995, he received the Kennedy Center Honor. In 2009 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom (the ceremony shown above). In 2002, he was given an Honorary Academy Award in recognition of his "remarkable accomplishments as an artist and as a human being"

And so we pray this news . . .

A Prayer about Climate Change and Wildfires

Posted by Frederic Brussat on January 2, 2022

Creator of trees, fire, wind, and warmth, You have given us the capacity to feel deep compassion for places and beings affected by wildfires. In 2012, Colorado suffered from a record-breaking wildfire season with more than 4000 fires. While we were visiting Mary Ann's sister, she drove us through the desolation wrought in the area by the Black Forest Fire northeast of Colorado Springs. It looked like a savaged and desolate war zone with blackened trees and ground. Between 80 and 100 homes were destroyed. We saw burnt out cars and areas where the sandy soil was spreading onto roads, with all the grasses and bushes that had held it in place before now burned out. We will never forget that experience.

Fast-forward to 2021

A Tiny Prayer for Those Affected by Tornados

Posted by Micah Bucey on December 12, 2021

On Friday and Saturday, December 10 and 11, 2021, an unusually large outbreak of tornadoes -- at least 30 -- ripped through six states in the United States -- Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, and Mississippi. Whole communities were destroyed, and at least 100 people are feared dead. Casualties were reported in a candle factory in Kentucky, an Amazon warehouse in Illinois, a nursing home in Arkansas, and elsewhere.

And so we pray this news . . .

A Prayer of Thanksgiving for Stephen Sondheim

Posted by Micah Bucey on December 1, 2021

Stephen Sondheim died November 26, 2021, at the age of 91. The obituary in The New York Times described him as "the theater’s most revered and influential composer-lyricist of the last half of the 20th century and the driving force behind some of Broadway’s most beloved and celebrated shows." He was known for his collaborative style and his ceaseless encouragement of actors, writers, and composers. I can attest to that. After his death, I got out a note I had received from Sondheim years ago. He said that he was unable to attend my show, but I should keep writing. And I have. Below is my prayer of gratitude for Stephen Sondheim.

And so we pray this news . . .

A Prayer for the Women and Girls of Afghanistan

Posted by Mary Ann Brussat on August 16, 2021

August 15, 2021, Afghanistan. The Taliban, having defeated the Afghan security forces in other areas of the country, entered the capital of Kabul, thus solidifying their total takeover of the country. United States military, diplomatic and business personnel, as well as other foreign nationals were evacuated, as thousands of Afghans tried to secure an escape as well. But most people of the country, exhausted from twenty years of war, had no options but to face what is presumed will be a strict and deadly regime.

A Taliban spokesperson told a BBC reporter that they will reimpose their version of Sharia (religious) law, which includes such things as stoning for adultery and amputation of limbs for stealing. The fate of women is uncertain. The spokesperson assured the BBC that women would be respected, allowed to work, and be able leave their homes without a male escort; girls would be able to go to school. But this was not true when the Taliban ruled the country from 1996 – 2001. Women who for two decades have had those rights, now worry their freedom will be taken away. Those who have attained professional and political power fear they will be killed. The women and girls of Afghanistan face an uncertain future and will need courage, strength, international support, and empathy for their suffering. The latter is expressed in the following prayer psalm.

And so we pray this news . . .

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About This Blog

The daily news summons us to prayer. The people, situations, and events of our times call out for our compassion and God's healing presence. In this blog we will pray in a variety of forms as we lift up the needs of the world. We hope that by praying the news in this way we will also expand both our spirituality and our practice. More

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