St. Francis Province, North India
O Lord God, you are the Prince of Peace. You came that the world might learn that peace, which you experience with the Father eternally. Lord, we pray for peace and love in our hearts, in our lives, in our families, in our Land and in every nation. We pray for the children, young people, the elderly, the poor and the neglected around the world. Give them the power to be gentle, the strength to be forgiving, the patience to be understanding, and the endurance to hold to what is right and true. Lord, send your Spirit into the hearts of all people that, the world may experience true peace through your abundant mercy and help us to devote our whole life to the task of making peace wherever we are. Inflame our hearts with your love, sanctify us that we may be true ambassadors of your peace in this world.
This prayer we make in the most holy and sweet name of Jesus our Lord and Savior. Amen
December
European Province
Pope Francis’ Peace Prayer
Lord, Father of our human family,
you created all human beings equal in dignity:
pour forth into our hearts a fraternal spirit
and inspire in us a dream of renewed encounter,
dialogue, justice and peace.
Move us to create healthier societies
and a more dignified world,
a world without hunger, poverty, violence and war.
(Fratelli tutti)
International Leadership Team
Prayer for World Peace
Heavenly Creator, we pray for the power to be gentle;
the strength to be forgiving;
the patience to be understanding;
and the endurance to accept the consequences of holding to what we believe to be right.
May we put our trust in the power of good to overcome evil and the power of love to overcome hatred.
We pray for the vision to see and the faith to believe in a world emancipated from violence,
a new world where fear shall no longer lead people to commit injustice,
or selfishness make them bring suffering to others.
Help us to devote our life and thought and energy to the task of making peace, praying for the inspiration and the power to fulfill the destiny. Amen
U.S. Province
God of life, you continue to create your universe with wondrous beauty and rich diversity. Send your Spirit of unity more deeply into our lives, so that we will not turn our diversity into division, or our fear into hatred. May your Risen Son, the Servant of Nonviolent Love, breath his peace into our minds and hearts.
Loving and generous God, you gather us daily at the table of your remembrance. We thank you for nourishing your pilgrim community with the Bread of Peace and the Cup of Blessing. May this sacred food sustain our commitment to overcome fear with trust, injury with pardon, and hatred with nonviolent love. We ask this through the Risen Christ who lives forever. Amen.
September
ULAF Region
Peace begins with a smile, as Mother Teresa of Calcutta said.
So then, let us ask with faith and trust in the Lord of Heaven and Earth to give us Peace, teach us peace, and guide us to peace. To open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: "War never again!"; with war, everything is destroyed." Instill in us the courage to carry out concrete gestures to build Peace.
Lord, give us the grace to be people of peace for our world that is still at war, and peace for the hearts that govern our nations.
Make us able to listen to the cry of our people who seek to transform weapons into instruments of peace and our fears into confidence to achieve the true peace we long for.
Keep the flame of hope burning in us so we patiently persevere in opting for dialogue and reconciliation, amid peoples who continue to kill mercilessly, so that peace can finally triumph. And may division, hatred, and war be banished from the heart of humankind.
Lord Jesus, pour forth grace into our hearts and minds so that we may now meet our brothers and sisters saying “Peace and all good reign forever. Amen.”
European Province
- Ecumenical Prayer for Peace:
“Loving God, we long for a life of peace with one another. When egoism and injustice prevail, when violence breaks out between people, when reconciliation seems impossible, you are the one who gives us hope and peace. When differences in language, culture or belief cause us to forget that we are your creation and that you have given us creation to take care of as a common home, then you are the one who gives us hope and peace. When people are played off against each other, when power is abused in order to use others, when events are manipulated to deceive others, then you are the one who gives us hope and peace. Teach us to treat each other justly and with compassion and to withstand corruption. Give us courageous women and men, who heal the wounds that hate and violence have left upon bodies and souls. Help us to find the correct words, gestures and means in order to promote peace. In whatever language we confess you as the “Prince of Peace”, let our voices also be raised clearly against violence and injustice. Amen.”