Last Friday, I had the privilege and honor to gather with over 200 clergy from across the Commonwealth for a “Prayer Conference” at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral and the State House in Boston. Clergy gathered to pray and to implore Gov. Healey to take bold, public administrative action to protect the citizens of the Commonwealth, agree not to use State assets in service of the current efforts by ICE and CBP, as well as to provide a mechanism to document such activities in order to hold those accountable for their actions.
I was asked to provide an invocation and benediction for the march to the state house and to lead singing along the way. Below are the words I wrote for the day. May they also provide inspiration and consolation for you during this very trying time in our country. Please CLICK HERE for a clip of the Invocation from the Mass Communities Action Network Facebook page.
Invocation Before the March
Holy One of Justice and Mercy,
God of the Exodus and the Exile,
Source of Compassion who hears the cry of the oppressed—
We gather today as clergy, faith leaders, and moral witnesses,
standing on the soil of the Massachusetts Commonwealth,
a place shaped by conscience, courage, and the belief
that government exists to protect life, not endanger it.
We come bearing the prayers of our people:
families living in fear,
workers targeted in the shadows,
children wondering if home will still be there when they return.
Their names are known to You, even when they are erased by policy.
We ask Your protection over all who are vulnerable
to the current actions of ICE and the Border Patrol—
those threatened by detention, deportation, and separation.
Let no one created in Your image be treated as disposable.
As we prepare to march,
steady our feet and strengthen our resolve.
Remind us that faith is not silent in the face of injustice
and that prayer must move our bodies as well as our hearts.
We lift before You the Governor of this Commonwealth
and all who hold authority.
Grant them prophetic courage—
the courage to act boldly,
to choose people over politics,
to use the power entrusted to them
to shield communities rather than surrender them to harm.
Let Massachusetts be a place of refuge, not fear;
of welcome, not punishment;
of moral leadership when others choose retreat.
Bless this march.
Let it be disciplined, peaceful, and unafraid.
May our voices echo the ancient truth
that love of neighbor is not optional
and justice is not delayed without cost.
Send us forth now—
to walk, to speak, to implore, and to protect—
until dignity is defended
and every neighbor can live without terror.
In faith, in defiance of injustice,
and in hope for what can still be made right,
we pray.
Amen. / Blessed be. / May it be so.
Benediction at the State House Doors
Go now, people of faith,
into halls of power bearing the authority of conscience
and the weight of your people’s prayers.
May the Holy One go before you—
softening hardened hearts,
opening closed ears,
and unsettling any comfort built on the suffering of others.
May you cross this threshold with courage that is calm,
words that are truthful,
and spirits anchored in love rather than fear.
Let no one mistake your gentleness for weakness
or your prayer for passivity.
May the Governor and all who govern feel, in this hour,
the moral urgency of their calling:
to protect the vulnerable,
to restrain unjust power,
and to act boldly when human dignity is at risk.
May this Commonwealth be reminded
that laws are meant to serve life,
that safety must never be purchased with cruelty,
and that the measure of leadership
is who is protected when it matters most.
As you enter,
may your presence itself be a prayer,
your silence speak truth,
and your petitions carry the echo
of every family longing to live without terror.
Go in peace,
go in courage,
go in prophetic hope—
until justice is not only spoken,
but enacted.
Amen. / Blessed be. / May it be so.