Liturgy for Justice
Scriptures with Themes for Reflection
From NRSV
Justice for All
“It is not good to be partial to the wicked or to deprive the righteous of justice.” – Proverbs 18:5
Do Justice and Have No Fear
“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” – Matthew 10:28
Justice for the Doer of Evil
“For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” – Malachi 4:1
God Wants Justice
“When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.” – Proverbs 21:15
Judges Must Be Just
“Then Absalom would say, “Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.” – 2 Samuel 15:4
Social Justice Warrior Quotes For Reflection
Conferring Dignity
“When an individual is protesting society's refusal to acknowledge his dignity as a human being, his very act of protest confers dignity on him.”
― Bayard Rustin
Need For Review Boards
“We must everywhere be part of the cry for civilian review boards, not in the naive belief that they are a panacea but in the conviction that police conduct is not the exclusive responsibility of commissioners and politicians. Police must be answerable to the citizenry they presumably protect, and if they have been educated to any other concept of their role, now is the time to educate them.”
― Bayard Rustin
Meet In Our Differences
“Yet while I do this work because of my faith, I also recognize of course that in a pluralistic society there are many different perspectives. It is both unrealistic and wrong to insist that everyone hold my views, my faith. The place we meet, in our differences, is in the founding documents of our democratic republic.”
― Sister Simone Campbell
Gospel’s Scandal
“The scandal is that the gospel means liberation, that this liberation comes to the poor, and that it gives them the strength and the courage to break the conditions of servitude.”
― Rev. Dr. James Cone
Political, Theological Intertwined
“What people think about God, Jesus Christ, and the Church cannot be separated from their own social and political status in a given society.”
― Rev. Dr. James Cone
“Justice must have an improvisational character if it is not to fall back into the sort of legal structure that, in spite of its intentions, can only result in the perpetuation of injustice.”
― Rev. Dr. Theodore W. Jennings, Jr.
Litany for Justice
LEADER: God, creator and image-maker of all. We have cried out for justice to be delivered for Black and Brown bodies. We have come with tear-filled eyes and heavy hearts, yearning for justice for George Floyd. We have come before you, and God you provided.
RESPONSE: Thanks be to God.
LEADER: We have said their names, the names etched in our minds, tattooed on our hearts, said in our prayers, and scrolled across screens when the next one has been killed at the long arm of the law. We have come to you, looking for righteous judgment to be rendered, finally, for one of our children. And you have answered our prayers.
RESPONSE: Thanks be to God.
LEADER: George. Daunte. Breonna. Rayshard. Atatiana. Elijah. Botham. Philando. Alton. Walter. Sandra. Freddie. Tamir. Michael. Terence. Eric. For all those who sought service and protection from the police, yet only received skin-colored violence, we thank you God that their lives were not in vain as they were witnesses who spiritually testified on behalf of George Floyd.
RESPONSE: Thanks be to God.
LEADER: God, you have shown that you are the Almighty, the Prince of Peace! You give us hope for tomorrow. We praise you for being with us, as we do this social justice work. We are thankful for your presence in that courtroom in Minneapolis. We glorify you for being a God of justice, equality and equity. We welcome the teachings of Jesus Christ and the will of the Holy Spirit to continue this work. We are grateful for the verdict, but God we know that you call us to stop the next incident, to prevent the next officer from ending the life of another body and we know that you will be with us as we do this work.
RESPONSE: Thanks be to God.
LEADER: We thank you God as we, believers and doers of our faith, not only vision the world as you made it, but work, yell, protest, rage, and fight to share the kingdom with all bodies. We thank you for the Justice that was done on behalf of George Floyd!
RESPONSE: Thanks be to God.
All: AMEN!
Prayer for Strength & Wisdom
O Creator, who is known to us by many names and worshipped in many ways, we seek strength and wisdom as we fight injustices against your fabulous creations—in all their forms. In this moment, let us mourn more Black lives snatched from us. But, don’t let mourning consume us. Give us the energy to fight those injustices. As we fight against these injustices, let us channel our rage at the machine—not its operators. So, hate won’t distract us from planning or derail strategy. May it be so. Amen