Moderator Richard Bott of the United Church of Canada Offers A Prayer

~ posted to Moderator Richard Bott’s Facebook page on November 17, 2021

The Right Rev. Dr. Richard Bott, 43rd Moderator of The United Church of Canada
Credit:
The United Church of Canada

There is so much beauty from sea to sky,
on roads that twist and turn
along the sides of mountains,
where one can look down from dizzying heights
into valleys that are lush and green,
or into ocean waters, salty, and full of life;
and look up to see mountain peaks
that have stood, sturdy, far longer
than humankind has walked your earth, God!

But when the rains come down,
hard and fast,
turning the soil into liquid slurry,
tonnes upon tonnes of rock and mud will move
with an unimaginable force,
and the rivers rise, flooding more than the plains,
sweeping over and away everything in its path.

Nothing human-made can stand
in the face of that force,
God of all creation.

That is what the people of British Columbia
have been facing, these past days,
with loss of life;
with communities cut off from each other,
some lacking power,
some in places already touched by fire
this season.

We pray for those who have died or been injured,
and all those who are grieving;
we pray for the crews who are out,
trying to figure out how to clear the way,
safely;
we pray for those who are in need,
and those who are wondering, “What next?!”;
and we pray that we would come together
as this community of Canada,
to offer what support is needed.

And, God, we pray that the rains would quiet,
to their normal, seasonal, flow;
that the land would remain sturdy,
that we would be held by its beauty,
once again.

Amen.