WCC Ecumenical Prayer Cycle: Canada and the United States of America

As I wrote about in a post a few months ago, part of my vicarage at Saint Peter's Church this year is is providing a supplemental paragraph about countries in the weekly Ecumenical Prayer Cycle created by the World Council of Churches. We pray for each country listed in the prayer cycle during the Intercessory Prayers at Saint Peter's on Sundays and the paragraph is included in our bulletin insert to provide context for those intercessions.

This week's countries (4 August - 10 August) are Canada and the United States of America. While the paragraph below provides information on current events, check out the week's WCC page for additional prayer resources:

We give thanks that portions of the Defense of Marriage Act were ruled unconstitutional in the United States of America earlier this summer, and pray for the law’s full repeal. We pray that the rights and lands of indigenous people in Canada are respected by those involved in oil sands extraction. We pray for the passage of comprehensive immigration reform currently held up by the US House of Representatives. We pray for millennials in the US suffering from high unemployment and staggering student loan debt.

God's peace,

Dustin

Dustin currently serves as Vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.