PRAYER OUT OF DARKNESS INTO PEACE, LIGHT AND HOPE
Could Lord Byron, British poet of the 19th century, have foreseen the dangers of today?
Darkness by Lord Byron
I had a dream, which was not all a dream.
The bright sun was extinguish'd, and the stars
Did wander darkling in the eternal space,
Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth
Swung blind and blackening in the moonless air;
Morn came and went—and came, and brought no day,
And men forgot their passions in the dread
Of this their desolation; and all hearts
Were chill'd into a selfish prayer for light:
And they did live by watchfires—and the thrones,
The palaces of crowned kings—the huts,
The habitations of all things which dwell,
Were burnt for beacons; cities were consumed,
And men were gather'd round their blazing homes
To look once more into each other's face; . . .
Oh Divine Mystery of Life, teach us to look once more into each other’s faces and to
see there the love and peace that were meant to be. Teach us to find the inner face of
each person we meet, the inner beauty of each creature we see, the inner light of the one
Earth Community.
Let us ponder the words of Maryknoll Sister Elizabeth Zwareva, spoken at the United
Nations in August of 2014:
“The bomb that exploded over Hiroshima consisted
of enriched uranium 235 and the one that exploded
over Nagasaki consisted of plutonium 239, a byproduct of uranium. These bombs had immediate as
well as long term effects on the environment as well
as on human health. The atomic bombs’ sudden,
intense and dramatic effects have left indelible
memories of death, destruction and horror among
the Japanese peoples of the world. People in the
affected areas still suffer from the effects of fallout.
…
“The results of scientific research that goes unaccompanied by ethical reflection
can be disastrous. The God-given ability to reflect upon our actions and how they
affect others is the way to curb those actions that cause harm …. By so doing we
are accepting life, respecting it and acting in ways that will promote and not
destroy it … The destructive force of nuclear weapons is incompatible with the
principle of bringing about good, avoiding harm and acting justly.
“As Jesus said, ‘I have come so that they may have life and have it in
abundance.’ Our duty then is to save ourselves and future generations from
perishing from the monster of our own creation through embracing humility and
loving life.” i
Source of Hope and Truth, help us to find our voices as did Father George Zabelka, the
Catholic Air Force chaplain, who blessed the men who dropped the atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki, yet who came to believe his silent complicity had been
terribly wrong. On the 40th anniversary of the bombings, he said:
“We must all become prophets. I really mean that. We must all do something for
peace. We must stop this insanity of worshipping the gods of metal. We must take
a stand against evil and idolatry. This is our destiny at the most critical time of
human history. But it’s also the greatest opportunity ever offered to any group of
people in the history of our world – to save our world from complete
annihilation.”
Prayer for Nuclear Disarmament
By: Education for Justice (adapted)
You have given us life, intelligence and the beauty of Creation, O Holy One.
Your good gifts were given so we might be stewards of all that is alive.
In our arrogance, we have unleashed fearful forces that destroy.
We have brought down fierce fire from the sky.
Your children have been burned, your gentle green earth scorched.
Fear rules us now, not Love; we have given in to evils, lesser and greater.
In your mercy, help us turn from destruction, from the bombs and barricades.
Lead us to Life again, to affirmation of all goodness and to international disarmament.
With your grace, may we begin to dismantle the bombs, beat the swords into plowshares,
And so transform the nuclear nightmare into the peace you have proposed.
Hear our prayer and guide us in your ways. Amen
i
The cited piece was published in the November-December 2014 Maryknoll NewsNotes.