God of hope, hear our lament.
Since we heard the news of ____________________
our minds are reeling.
This is violence happening in our own neighbourhood.
Some of us knew the victims,
some know people who knew them.
Our community is grieving.
We pray for family and friends of the victims.
We pray for police officers who responded.
We pray for counsellors called in,
and everyone touched by this crime.
We need your help because this crime is not singular.
Every year women are murdered by their partners,
in their homes, in their own bedrooms,
or even when they try to flee the violence.
Help us do better. Help us believe victims of abuse,
help us protect them when they try to leave.
Help us work on changing a culture that teaches men
that women are property, that women must obey,
and that women who don’t, deserve death.
We pray for our local women’s shelter,
that right now is sheltering women who have stories
just like the story of the woman who was murdered.
Give those sheltering women
strength and courage to do their work,
and show us how we can best support them.
We pray all this in the name of Jesus, Amen
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I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.