Invocation for Juneteenth

black and white photo of black person at a protest holding up a sign that reads “If you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else.” ―Toni Morrison

O Life of the Universe, whom we know through various names;

Who heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds

Who commanded my people to recall the moment we left Egypt every single day of our lives;

Bless this gathering of neighbors

As we remember and celebrate our own history

A history that is not as long ago and as far away as we might prefer to imagine.

Be with us, as we acknowledge the sins of slavery, racism, and discrimination

That stained our nation even before its inception;

And be with us, too, as we remember those who struggled and died so that others could be free.

Continue to bring us

From slavery to freedom

From sorrow to joy

From mourning to festivity

From darkness to a great light

From servitude to redemption

When we will sing a great new song together before You.

And let us say: Amen.

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