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A prayer for the Jerusalem I have met By Jec Dan Borlado (Ecumenical Accompanier, Jerusalem)

Write up No. 6

Dear God,

Blessed by your name and good heart.

You are first and last.

All knowing and mysterious.

Liberator and reconciler.

A God who transforms and resists situations of separation.

A God in communion with all of creation.

Hear this prayer of mine.

I pray for all the people going through the checkpoints to enter Israel:

Qalandiya, Zaytoun, Shua'fat, and Wadi Nar -

May their hearts and soul never lose hope,

That one day they will be able to move freely in their own country.

A chain and lock at Zaytoun

Checkpoint

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I pray for the neighborhoods of Silwan, Sheikh Jarrah, and Shua'fat - Anata.

They struggle everyday from threats of house eviction and demolition;

From settler harrassment and illegal detention of young boys;

What answer do you offer to these neighborhoods? Is it "love thy neighbor as

thyself"?

I pray for the refugees in the Shua'fat camp.

Their expressed impressions of being imprisoned cannot be ignored.

I thought no one was ever meant

to live in lack because You

provide for all, all for free.

I pray that streams of living

water will flow through these

places and restore all that need

it.

Fawzyeh Al Kurd –

widow and mother;

threatened by house

eviction. She lives in the

neighbourhood of Sheik

Jarrah.

Sabeel – in Arabic it

means “spring”. They

are meant to be the

sources of free flowing,

clean water inside the

Old city of Jerusalem.

Currently, all 17 of them

do not work.

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I pray for all the children here, and

everywhere.

The future is in their eyes, the world

is in their song.

May elders be used to equip and

nurture them towards rightness and

justice.

May the lives we live now, inspire

them in their personal and joint

pursuit for peace.

I pray for the Indigenous people of this land - the Bedouins among them.

They used to graze their flock in the best places, now the best places have been

fenced.

Provide them

with the

energy they

need to run

simple

appliances;

mobile phones

and laptops are

very common

nowadays;

As they try to

keep up with

this self-

combusting

mainstream society run on oil and money.

It says, “Peace

begins with Me.”

Abu Hamis – a Bedouin.

Shows us and his daughters

the broken (due to bad, cold

weather) electric generator

that provides 5 hours of

electricity to 22 households

daily

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I pray for the Friday demonstrators at Al-Bustan tent, Sheikh Jarrah, and Women

in Black.

Voices in the

wilderness they

may be, but voices

of the concerned

nonetheless.

Give us ears to

listen and eyes to

see their cry;

Their reasons for

religiously

expressing their

cause every week.

I pray for “the wall” and the power behind its establishment.

Maybe one day, all the equipment used to build the separation barrier,

Will be used just the same to take it down.

Why was the Berlin wall

taken down, yet this wall

stays up? Is there a

difference between the two?

Three generations of advocacy - Mother, daughter,

and grand daughter. Taken at the Women in Black

Friday demonstrations.

Tower of Power or Tower of Insecurity?

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I pray also for the many expressions of Your church here in Jerusalem.

I know you understand them all, but wouldn't it be better to be together? I mean

complimenting each other?

Christians, Muslims, Jews, and non-believers who lead towards abundant life.

They have Your "breath of life" in common.

I pray for the peace making, accompanying - organizations here also.

The quantity of

people doing the

same things for

peace in this land

is surprising.

But what is more

surprising is that,

though we are

many,

What we all work

for remains -

elusive.

If you look closely, 5 places of worship are in this picture. The Dome of the Rock, Augusta

Victoria, Russian Church of the Ascension, Pater Noster Church, and Al-Aqsa Mosque..

The door entrance to the EAPPI office and

Jerusalem Inter-Church Center.

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I pray for the Jews, dear God.

As society is universal, they too have societal struggles.

Corruption, Homelessness, Depression, Mal-education;

Jewish

communities

value family

just as much

as anybody

else.

I pray that Your truth continue to be upheld as sacred.

And that your grace we easily find in the most desperate times.

May your love

envelop the city

of Jerusalem -

For the city of

Jerusalem is

every city and

village throughout

the whole world.

This is my prayer,

Through your Son

- Jesus Christ,

I pray,

Amen.

Glory to God and Peace on Earth!

God of Life, Lead us to Justice and Peace!

Stickered wall in

the Jewish

Quarter of the

Old City of

Jerusalem.

Jerusalem skyline.

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Jec’s Email: jecdanborlado@yahoo.com

Please like Jec’s facebook page: www.facebook.com/apieceonpeace

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