Prayer for Ukraine, Russia, and the world community
A Christian Science perspective.
The United States, Europe, Russia, and Ukraine are currently engaged in negotiations of great sensitivity. Much is at stake, including the many years of economic progress that have come to all sides in working together toward the common good.
In my prayers about this situation, I’ve been affirming that good cannot be lost and that intelligent action can’t be displaced by the fog of disinformation – no matter who is generating it – or misinformation. God, all-intelligent Mind, is at the helm, and all the parties can respond to the divine intelligence, which will show them a way out of this impasse.
It’s not possible to predict what the actual political outcome will be, but one thing we can do in our prayers is to affirm peace, progress, and freedom from fear for all people. In his last supper with his disciples, Christ Jesus told his followers, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: ... Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). This is the peace to strive for, where fear has no part in the negotiations and where peace reigns.
Often, fear clouds thought and keeps one from making good decisions. Or it may produce rigidity in which one holds to a certain position out of fear of change. Here divine Love comes to the rescue, because it is the nature of Love to drive out fear. Even love from another human being can give one a measure of strength and peace. So it follows that infinite Love, pouring out abundantly on all, can lift hearts, clear thought, and open eyes not just to the current options, but to a good path that perhaps hasn’t been seen before.
Divine Love can remove the burden of pride, human will, and outlining that could complicate negotiations and keep this good path from being found. Each leader and other individuals involved in the negotiations are loved by God, cherished and needed.
People of all nations, including the citizens of Ukraine and the Crimean area specifically, are under God’s care. There is no need for violence or fear. God’s justice can prevail.
To me, it’s important not to place blame on any of the parties, but to see that war, distrust, and related evils are temptations based on the belief that God is absent and that only human force can protect what is perceived as needed and good. In her “Miscellaneous Writings 1883-1896,” Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered Christian Science, offers a wonderful antidote to such thoughts. She writes, “The antagonistic spirit of evil is still abroad; but the greater spirit of Christ is also abroad, – risen from the grave-clothes of tradition and the cave of ignorance” (p. 370).
This spirit, the spirit of Christ, can touch and redeem this situation. It can bless all with peace and safety.
A Russian translation of this article is available in The Herald of Christian Science on JSH-Online.