A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original article appears below. The following is a prayer penned by the Rev. Neville Jacobs, a “coloured” citizen of South Africa, on his return to Canada in January, 1987 after a visit to his family. Mr. Jacobs is presently minister of Knox Presbyterian Church, Cranbrook, and will again be one of the guest teachers at the Covenant Community: Presbyterian Leadership College Summer School in Nelson this August. He has served several pastorates in South Africa, received his M.Div. from Covenant Seminary, done post-graduate work on liberation theology with the Jesuits at St. Louis University, and has been accepted as a doctoral candidate in the Reformed Church’s Seminary in The Netherlands.
The prayer may be used during Lent or as a part of any prayer asking for justice or true compassion on the earth for the oppressed. – Calvin Brown, Worship Editor.
O God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
God of Mary, Martha and Hannah,
You are no passive onlooker on our history.
You are neither detached nor aloof from our
human struggles, suffering and pain,
You are the God of the Exodus!
It is you who break the bow of the strong soldier
but give strength to the weak.
It is you who lift the poor from the dust
And raise the needy from their misery.
O Liberator – Emmanuel God we thank you for
being a Man of Sorrows and familiar with suffering,
Hear our Prayer for the healing of our brokenness
that we have suffered as a result of years
of oppression.
Establish in our hearts a persistent desire
for equality, justice, peace and human liberation.
Bring an end to fear, greed, violence and racism.
Break the yoke of oppression.
Let your glorious day come quickly to
all of your children in this beloved land
To change, to shape, and to humanise our history.
Through Christ our Saviour, Brother and Friend we pray.
AMEN.