Liturgy for the Sanctity of Life

Responsive Reading 
From Our World Belongs to God, 
the Contemporary Testimony of the Christian Reformed Church, 
Article 44 

Leader: 
Life is a gift from God’s hand, 
who created all things. 

Congregation: 
Receiving this gift thankfully, 
with reverence for the Creator, 
we protest and resist 
all that harms, abuses, or diminishes the gift of life, 
whether by abortion, pollution, gluttony, 
addiction, or foolish risks. 

Leader: 
Because it is a sacred trust, 
we treat all life with awe and respect, 
especially when it is most vulnerable—
whether growing in the womb, 
touched by disability or disease, 
or drawing a last breath. 

Congregation: 
When forced to make decisions 
at life’s raw edges, 
we seek wisdom in community, 
guided by God’s Word and Spirit. 

Prayer 
Almighty God, 
We come to you this day in the knowledge that 
it is in only you that we live and move and have our being. 
We praise you, God our creator, for your handiwork 
in shaping and sustaining your wondrous creation. 
We worship you, covenant God, for the deliverance we have 
in the redeeming work of Jesus Christ, 
for the way you have rescued us, 
and for the gift of the gospel message that is ours to share with the world. 
We thank you, God our provider, for 
the miracle of life and the joy we experience 
in the wonders of living in your created world. 

We confess, Lord, that there are dark places where we would prefer not to venture. 
There are times when you have called us to speak,
that we have chosen silence.
There are places where you have called us to shine your light, 
that we have cowered to avoid. 
Holy God, the pain and ugliness of abortion swirls around us.
Its destructive power has harmed those 
in this country, this community, and in this church,
and the realities of abortion continue to threaten the lives of many.

Living God, as a church we grieve with those touched by the brutality of abortion. 
We pray for the women whose lives have been forever changed, 
who are left with scars both physical and emotional. 
We pray for the men whose souls cry out in grief, 
but whose voices have gone unheard. 
And we also pray for the children who were never given the opportunity 
to breathe their first breath. 

Lord, you created us in your image and more wonderfully restored us in Christ. 
Just as you are re-creating the world in Christ, 
help us to serve as agents of your shalom. 
We know that you alone can bring healing, 
And that you alone can conquer the forces of evil that work against us. 
It is in this knowledge that we come to you not in our own strength, 
but seeking yours. 
Convict us, Lord, as the church of your people to be the church. 
We ask that those things that break your heart would break ours as well. 
Empower us, God, to serve as your hands and feet in our world, 
to sense the urgency you are placing upon our hearts, 
to leave our nets and follow you, 
to proclaim the message you give us with both our mouths and our hands, 
to feed the hungry and to comfort those who mourn, 
in order that no one who has an abortion 
would feel judged or alone, abandoned or overwhelmed. 

God of grace, 
hear our prayer. 
In the name of Jesus Christ, 
who lives and reigns with you and the Spirit, 
one God, now and forever. Amen. 

[Photo: flickr user Robert Bejil Photography]