Please find prayers to mark the start of the United Nations' 70th anniversary year later this month.
We in the United Nations Association Northern Ireland are very grateful to Dean Gregory Dunstan, the Dean of Armagh, for having compiled these prayers. We invite churches and faith groups throughout Northern Ireland to use some or all of the prayers close to UN Day, which is marked each year on 24 October.
PRAYERS AT THE 70th ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNITED NATIONS
Author’s Note
These prayers, while written from the perspective of Christian faith, have been prepared with some thought for their possible use by people of other religious traditions. For this they may be adapted as desired. For use in Christian worship, a customary conclusion such as ‘through Jesus Christ our Lord’ may be added.
A Prayer of Thanksgiving
Gracious God,
we thank you for the gift of the United Nations to the peoples of the world,
for all who have devoted themselves to its purposes,
and for those who in its service have given their lives;
for the safeguarding of rights,
for access to justice and to the rule of law,
for the patience of diplomacy, of peacemaking and peacekeeping,
for the provision of food and the relief of refugees,
for the nurture of children and the promotion of health,
for the encouragement of development and of financial stability.
Grant that the nations of today,
mindful both of achievement and of failure,
may take forward all that is entrusted to them,
true to the vision of our common humanity
and of the co-operation of the nations for the peace, security and welfare of all.
For the work of the United Nations
Eternal God, beyond the desolation of poverty, of our violence and war,
you have given us the vision of the nations at peace with the earth and with one another.
Recall us to this your purpose in our day.
Prosper the work of the United Nations and its agencies
bringing together the peoples of the world
in the pursuit of truth and justice, equity and peace,
that the welfare of each may be the concern of all,
the suffering of each evoke the compassion of all,
and the achievement of each be a gift to all;
so may the nations be one as you are One, now and forever.
The Sustainable Development Goals
The prayer that follows uses a re-writing of the text of the Sustainable Development Goals:
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015/transformingourworld) which, it is hoped, expresses their intention in the rhythm and language of prayer.
God of mercy and compassion, after all the years of our violence, you have given a vision of life in community with the earth and with one another. Give us grace to achieve the goals upon which we are united:
1. An end to the poverty that condemns your children to life less than that for which you made them;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
2. An end to the exploitation, hunger and malnutrition that impair both earth’s fertility and human life;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
3. The good health, well-being and fullness of life which is your purpose for all people;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
4. An education for all worthy of the human spirit, and the attainment of maturity and wisdom;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
5. The equality of women and men at all ages and in all areas of responsibility;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
6. The availability of clean water and sanitation for all, and the integrity of earth’s rivers, lakes and seas;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
7. The provision of clean, affordable energy for all and the restoration to equilibrium of the vital processes of the earth;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
8. The achievement of ordered and sustained economic growth, with the dignity of productive work for all;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
9. The building of networks of industry, transport and distribution that will serve human welfare and employ the creative genius of the human mind;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
10. The reduction of inequality within and among the nations that impairs the order and justice of human society;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
11. The building of towns and cities that are safe for human life, sustain the wealth of human culture and are at ease with the natural world around them;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
12. The responsible use of the resources of the earth and the products of industry both for human well-being and for the life of the planet;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
13. The urgent amelioration or reversal of climatic change, for the sake of human society and of the inherited riches of this world;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
14. The conservation of the resources of the oceans and seas, out of which all life emerged;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
15. The conservation and restoration of the life-giving soil and the sheltering forest, so that the earth may breathe and produce its fruit;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
16. The development of structures of justice and peace, that all may share equally in human society and in the life of its peoples and institutions;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
17. A common commitment, ever renewed, to the life of human society in harmony with the earth and with the resources available to sustain it;God, give perseverance;
God, give grace.
Almighty God,
you have brought the nations of the world in a united endeavour
to commit to the goals of sustainable development for the whole human family.
Move them also to provide the resources
and give them the patience and perseverance to attain them,
so that, from birth to death,
all your children may enjoy the fullness of life for which you made them,
and cherish this earth as our common home
and the garden of your delight.
Gregory Dunstan
Dean of Armagh
6th October 2015