Minnesota's Electoral College gathered in the State Capitol

Today Minnesota's Electoral College gathered in the State Capitol Rotunda to formally cast Minnesota's votes for president. I have been asked to do the opening prayer on behalf of all of Minnesota(not easy to do or even possi I have been asked before but I am honored to have again been asked especially now. It seems like a particularly important time to pray. Our country is in need to prayer, think. So I want it share my prayer with you here. Perhaps it can help encourage a wave of prayer.

Creator God, in a single moment you hurled the worlds into being, countless suns yet one universe. You called forth life on our plant, diverse in its essential nature, yet of one linage and one future. You give us one another with a great diversity of gifts and the whisper of a uniting vision. And you invite us to join you in the ever-unfolding work of manifesting the interrelatedness of your creation community.

Today we join the millions who pray for Newtown CT and mourn the loss of the twenty children and six adults at the Sandy Hook School. May our democracy help us to find ways to protect our children as the president has asked.

Today we also thank you:

for the gifts of wisdom and conviction in those who have gone before us,

for the untold workers in the service of democracy

for deep commitment of the people of Minnesota's to the voting process.

for the ways this national election season may have opened up the path toward more common good.

And we confess the ways in which we also let our election season trap us in accusatory posturing, disrespect, and fear. Give us a new commitment to your gift of democracy, honoring it in all we do, and in the decisions that are made on our behalf.

We call on you, Most Holy One, to be a witness to our hope this day.

And we ask that You would give hope to our days to come.

We know you are the God of blessing and power and we ask that you bless the efforts of this day and of the days to come, that they may bear fruit in our nation.

Bless this gathering and those whose efforts bring it about. May what we do here today increase our ability to be a blessing to democracy and may our democracy to the worldwide common good.

With longing hearts we pray for the fullness of peace, justice, and wellbeing for all.

For peace, for shalom, salaam, shanty; may it all be so, amen