August 26, 2021 — Spirit & Verse is a monthly column of original poem-prayers composed by Cameron Bellm, a Seattle-based writer and mother of two whose “Prayer for a Pandemic” went viral, bringing solace and comfort to many struggling during COVID-19.
A Prayer for Peace When the World is on Fire
In these days of pandemic and unrest,
Of earthquakes and insurrections,
Peace feels like a mirage,
Something always beyond the horizon.
In our helplessness, Lord, be with us.
Remind us, when we encounter the suffering of others,
That there is nothing that affects one of us,
That does not affect us all.
Are we not sisters and brothers,
All of us brought to life through your creative Spirit,
All of us sanctified by your incarnation?
Draw us, Lord, to bring all our humble tools
And work with You and each other to build a better world,
One where each of Your children is honored as sacred,
One where peace is the language we speak, the air we breathe.
Amen.
Previous Spirit & Verse poem-prayers:
A Prayer for the Ignatian Year
A Prayer for the Month of the Sacred Heart
A Prayer for Mary’s Month During a Pandemic
St. Joseph Prayer
A Prayer for Ash Wednesday
A Prayer for the Feast of the Epiphany
A Prayer for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
A Prayer for the Month of the Holy Souls
A Prayer for Living “Fratelli Tutti”
Our Lady of Sorrows
A Prayer for the Beginning of the School Year
A Prayer for the Feast of St. Ignatius
Cameron Bellm is a Seattle-based writer of prayers, poems, and devotionals. After completing her Ph.D. in Russian literature at the University of California, Berkeley, she traded the academic life for the contemplative life, informed by Ignatian spirituality and Catholic social teaching. She is the author of “A Consoling Embrace: Prayers for a Time of Pandemic” (23rd Publications, 2020). Cameron and her husband have two young sons, and, blessedly, playing with Legos often nurtures her spiritual life as much as reading the lectionary. You can find her at cameronbellm.com and on Instagram, @cameronbellm.