Today is a day unlike other days,
a Thursday of mysteries,
where we remember your final meal with your friends.
Taking a towel, you washed their feet.
Knowing what was to come,
and what you had to suffer,
you instructed them to love one another.
You told them, ”Peace I leave with you,
Do not let your hearts be troubled,
and do not let them be afraid.”
From the heart of this pandemic
we raise our solitary prayers to you.
We miss the consolation of our congregations
when so many are lamenting.
We pray for all whose hour has come
to depart from this world.
We know that we are made by you,
and are going to you.
Give peace to the dying,
and protection to those who care for them.
So many are living out your call to love one another,
braving illness to minister in practical ways.
In this time of economic hardship,
let generosity be the air we breathe.
Jesus, after that dinner together
you prayed in the night alone
as death and suffering loomed large.
Today the weight of human sorrow is heavy upon us,
and we join you on our knees.
We, too, do not want this cup of suffering.
We want this virus to pass over us.
We are bewildered by this pandemic.
We want healing
It is a time of separation
and a time of great togetherness.
It is a time of fear and doubt
and a time of resolve and deep faith.
It is a time of helplessness
and a time of reaching out.
Meet us here in this darkness, God.
Send us angels and give us strength
to meet this time of trial.
Carol Penner, 2020